We all have our stories
by gem1n1
Summary: I had heard people say 'this trip changed my life' more times than I could count and everytime I thought well what was your life like before. With her friends Lafayette and Tara Sookie takes a vacation for the first time in her life but will it be her last. AU Pre-revelation
1. Chapter 1

I had heard people say 'this trip changed my life' more times than I could count and everytime I thought well what was your life like before. Don't get me wrong we can all appreciate a good story in the little backwoods town of Bon Temps that I grew up in. Nothing ever really happens and it doesn't seem to bother anyone until someone comes back from somewhere (sometimes as far as just two towns over) and suddenly everyone's thoughts go to their story or they start thinking about why they don't have a story.

I had enough of a story even if it was a bit of a sob story.

At the sweet age of five I lost my parents and older brother in a flood when they were travelling to take my brother to a football camp. We weren't the wealthiest of families by far and my parents had scrimped and saved so that he could go. I was supposed to go with them but had begged to stay at my Gran's house instead. My little disability meant that being in large crowds like I was going to be once we reached the camp was going to be pretty much unbearable before you tacked on the hours of driving that would have worn me down. I had said goodbye and then trotted off to help my Gran in the kitchen with a smile on my face. A few hours later and that smile didn't return for years. Even now I would catch a stray thought here or there about how it was so tragic for me and Gran to be left alone like that. Gran would get smiles of sympathy for her losses whilst in their heads they pitied her for being lumbered with me, Crazy Sookie, the defective child.

Only a few years later after fighting hard Gran lost her other child, my Aunt Linda, to cancer and my barely teenage cousin Hadley took off to parts unknown with a boy from a town over. Gran got the same looks and I caught the same stray thoughts all over again.

So we were alone and that was OK cos we had eachother.

Times were hard for Gran and me. She had retired when she started looking after me and as much as renting my parents house out lifted a little bit of a burden money only ever stretched so far but Gran never left us wanting. Be that as it may I started working the moment I could. I mowed lawns and did grocery shopping for some of the older ones in town for a few coins a piece and when I was old enough I would babysit for the youngsters in town. When the local bar was sold to a new guy in town I managed to get a job busing tables after school which moved to hostess and then an actual waitress as I got older.

I didn't do too well in school. It's hard to concentrate on what the teacher is saying when you can read the minds of your classmates and everyone is thinking about everything but the work they are supposed to be doing. School was always difficult but I did well enough all things considered to pass all my tests. It meant that when the lovely old lady that ran the local library retired I stepped in to replace her. Working days at the library and weekends and evenings at the bar meant more money but bills and taxes soon started creeping up and has Gran got older medical bills stacked up on the top of that. I had no choice but to get another job. So I spent my days Monday through to Saturday at the library and Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday evening working at the local Walmart and Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday evening working at the local bar leaving me Sunday days for church and catching up on things around the house and the garden. As mobile as Gran was there were some things that she just couldn't do.

Gran helped where she could. She had sold some of our land when I was younger, as much as she could anyways. Everything in my parent's house that wasn't a piece of much needed furniture was sold. We took bits and pieces more sentimental than anything but with everything else if it could be sold it was, what couldn't was donated.

She made the occasional thing here and there. She sold her quilts twice a year at the local fayre and she sold her preserves. Anything she didn't sell went in the stock pile. With the wild fruits that grew in the woods around our home there was never a shortage. There was a short time where she and I ate nothing but toast and preserves til we got back on track again.

She baked and traded with others within her clubs. More times than I could count she would head out for the afternoon with Maxine Fortenberry (the town's biggest gossip) with a bunch of fruit pies and come home with casseroles and pasta dishes.

Most people in our town just got by and whilst most would offer anything they could most had too much pride to ask. There was nothing wrong with a bit of trade though not in my Gran's books and since her apple pie was the best in the Parish they were rarely brought back home again.

The one thing that Gran did the most was babysit. She told me having the young around knocked 10 years off her. She charged but never really much. It was usually a little bit of food or a couple of dollars. As soon as the kids were gone she would put it in the trinket box on the mantle. At the end of every month she would send me into town to take it all to the bank. The bank teller hated me.

I never took from Gran and I never let her or the house go without. I was the master at remaking clothes. Jeans to shorts or skirts, dresses to skirts or tops. When clothing became too threadbare to be used as anything wearable it was cut up and used as cleaning rags. We wasted very little. We couldn't afford to really waste anything.

Life was hard and there were a few winters we didn't have the wood to burn to keep the chill out of the house at night. I was barely ten the second time and still too young to be swinging an axe to take down the trees around us and then splitting them. I slept in Gran's bed every night that winter, the two of us huddled under the blankets. Louisiana never gets the bitter cold of the northern states but its cold enough at night to give you more than a chill.

From the moment I started working I put a little money away. It was never much just a dollar here and there. It became a little more as I gained more jobs and a little more still when those jobs ended up higher paying or when I had a good night of tips. It all went in this little box in my underwear drawer.

At first I was saving so that I didn't have to work so many jobs. If I could have dropped the supermarket job I would have been eternally glad (even though I would have missed out on a lot of the discounted food) but then my two best friends came up with a wild idea. We had never gone beyond the Parish borders and we were tired of listening to everyone else's stories. We wanted our own. One Sunday while they sat in the sunshine and I mowed the yard we made a list of cities. It had to be a city that we went to. Coming from a small town we wanted a different feel. There were a few beaches thrown in for variety but it was a city we really wanted. Some of them were crazy like New York or San Francisco and LA which we knew if we picked we'd be on zimmer frames by the time we could save enough but there were some sensibile ones too. We chose with a pin. The pin said Dallas so Dallas was where we saved to go. We were sixteen and still in school but ready to take on the world.

Five years after that afternoon was when my two best friends Tara and Lafayette had the money for us to go. I was short over two hundred and fifty dollars. We had planned to fly and stay in a good hotel and to have money to shop and to go to clubs and to eat out almost everyday. They had scrimped every penny they could and had actually done it. I on the other hand would have done it except my car broke down and a simple repair costing less than a hundred turned into three times that and then a week later the washing machine broke down and needed repairing. The repair job on that was higher than buying new so I had to go into my savings twice in less than a month. A few months later a bad storm put a hole in the roof and it cleared me out. I had to start over and so I hadn't bought anything I didn't desperately need for over 3 years. I had darned and rehemmed my clothes til there was practically nothing left of them. Knowing it would take me at least another year to put the money together barring any further complications I told my friends to go without me but to have fun for me.

My friends being my friends changed the plans.

We downgraded the hotel we were staying in and drove instead of flying. It wasn't the luxury break we had planned for all those years but it meant we were going and we were going together.

The day we were leaving followed one of the worst nights in my history at Merlottes. News of lay offs at the nearby working plant sent many people into the bar to do the only thing they could do, drown their sorrows. It took til three in the morning for the last drunk as a skunk worker to stumble out to their ride home. When I fell into my bed it was quarter past. When the high pitched beep beep beep of my alarm woke me it was a little after six. I was bone tired but as I climbed out of bed and stretched up towards the ceiling I knew today was the day.

Today was my very last day before we left.

Today was the day I left Bon Temps for the first time.

Today was the day my very first vacation began.

Heading to my bathroom I did my business and took a shower to get the bar smell off me. By the time I headed downstairs I was feeling more myself, smiles and all.

"Good Morning Gran."

"Good Morning Sookie. I didn't hear you get in last night. Was everything alright?" I smiled at Gran's back. She was huddled around the stove cooking what smelled like bacon and eggs. She tried her best to stay awake for when I got home so late but I knew it was getting harder for her.

"A bunch of workers were in. They're laying people off at the plant. Not sure how many just yet but there was an awful lot in last night."

"Did everyone leave alright?"

"That's why we were so late leaving. It took a while to get everyone a safe ride home. Sam took a few himself in his truck." Sam was my boss at Merlottes. He was the nicest guy around these parts and the easiest one for me to be around. My little disability meant being around people for long periods of time would leave me with screaming headaches. The drunker they got the louder their thoughts became. I barely got anything from Sam. It was quite relaxing by comparison.

"Was he there to lock up?"

"Yes. He walked me to my car just like usual too. He is very conscious about our safety at night."

"That's because he is sweet on you."

"Gran!"

"It's true Sookie dear. That boy had his eye on you since before you turned eighteen. It's a good job he has always been a gentleman or I would have had him pick his switch." She may have mumbled that last part but I still heard her. Sam was my friend, that's all.

Gran brought over the plate of bacon and egss and a stack of toast that looks like it could feed a family. I give her an incredulous look.

"Don't look at me like that Sookie. I know you have been skipping meals to save for your trip." I look away for a second but it is more than enough for Gran. "Sookie I am happy you are going on this trip." Her hand wraps around mine forcing me to look at her again. "You have worked so hard for so long Sookie. You need to stop and do something for yourself. Go have fun and come back with a mountain of stories to tell me." I smile not really knowing what to say. Gran had never really said anything about our trip. I'd always thought that she expected it to just be a dream, something to hold onto. There were times like when my savings had to be spent that I believed I would spend the rest of my days saving up for a trip I'd never take.

"Now eat up before it gets cold. You have a long day at the library and the bar and then that long drive. You need to keep your strength up. Why you decided to leave then I'll never know."

Whilst Sam happily gave me the time off (the other waitresses would be more than happy at a chance at more weekend tips) and the supermarket didn't mind giving me the single day off I needed from them the library was a different kettle of fish. I was the only member of staff at the library which meant if I wasn't there it didn't open. There wasn't the money to hire anyone else to work there. I managed to swing the Saturday and the Friday after much pleading and begging. The Monday took a little bit of underhanded guilt tripping since I had worked several hours unpaid for two months because of the local high school. It did mean however that all three of us would be working a full shift today before climbing into our cars and beginning the three and a half hour trek. We fully intended on being in Dallas for breakfast Friday morning. We weren't going to waste a second we didn't have to.

My time in the library seemed to fly by. It was the last chance before my weekend off so there were plenty of people coming through the door swapping over their books for the weekend. There were a few looks from some of the older customers obviously upset at me for changing their routines. Mrs Gentry even told me I was being positively rude with my selfishness. Then she went on at me about how about the only time she had ever left Bon Temps was on her honeymoon and she hated every single second in New Orleans.

I had to bite my tongue to say that was her not me. I'd never know if I liked it outside of this town if I didn't leave it at least once.

By the time she had left I was partly mortified she had berated me at work with three other women behind her but the other part, the secret part of me, wanted to leave right then and there. That little part had always whispered to me that I should just pack up and leave and find something exciting, something that wasn't this quiet little town. I always shushed it, pushed it down deep. I wasn't afraid to leave I just didn't want to leave the only family I still had left and Gran would never leave that farmhouse.

As the day wound on I returned to my day of putting away books, checking through books that were late and requesting book loans from the Shreveport Library. We didn't have the largest library or the most impressive. Every book that was ours had been read at least a thousand times and other than the requisite children's books, the study aids for the high school and books on the Civil War (people were still very enthusiastic about it round these parts, there were even clubs) the other permanent fixtures were the bodice ripper romances. Every one was well loved and on constant rotation with the over fifty crowd. And me. Most of the new books we had, best sellers and cook books and the like were loaned to us from Shreveport on a monthly basis. All the loaned books were kept on a special stand beside my desk. I gave them and every other shelf a good polish every day and pulled all the books to the front of the shelves.

At four thirty I locked the door to the library and jumped into my car heading in the opposite direction to home for my shift at Merlottes. Merlottes was a nice bar and grill, a lot nicer than some of the others in the area. Most of them leaned more towards dive than anything else. It was a simple place filled with booths and tables and a pool table that was always popular on Friday and Saturdays as all the singles flirted it up.

Walking through the front door I waved to Tara who was behind the bar giving the resident drunk Jane Bodehouse a look. I knew that look. Jane had opened her drunken trap again.

My eyes scanned the tables quickly as I walked through glad that the tables weren't too full. I partly wanted them to stay that way so that none of us were too exhausted on our drive out to Dallas but if it got busier tips would be better and I would have more money to spend whilst in Dallas. I wasn't a flashy girl by any means and never had any cash to flaunt but a new dress would be pretty nice all things considered.

I'd almost made it passed the kitchen doorway when I heard Lafayette call out to me.

"Hey Sook!" I stuck my head around the door. "You ready to get your freak on up in Dallasssssssssss!" I laughed at him shaking his butt around as he spoke. He was dancing around the kitchen waving his spatula around, the tassle ends of his purple headscarf waving around as he moved. He looked as flamboyant as ever and it made me smile even bigger to see him so free and so happy.

Terry bless his soul was stood in the corner giving him a wide eyed look. Even after all these years cooking at his side Terry still had moments where he looked overwhelmed by Lafayette's wild nature.

"I most certainly am. How you doing Terry?" His face softened a little as he turned to face me. For all his troubles and the PTSD and all Terry was a good guy. He and I had a lot in common when it came down to the folks of Bon Temps. Though we were different in the head we were both judged as defective, broken, by the town. On some occasions when the PTSD got the better of him it was painful to be around him. Every thought and emotion seemed to triple in strength and it would hit me like a hammer, shields or no shields.

"I'm doing good today Sookie. How about you?" His kind nature always makes me smile. How someone could stay so kind despite everything they had seen was amazing.

"I'm doing good now Terry thankyou. I'll see you guys in a lil bit."

Turning I headed towards the office where each of us had a little cubby to keep our things in. Sadly Sam was in there on the phone with someone so I had to grab my uniform and change in the ladies. It wasn't the best scenario and I banged my elbow on the door pulling the white tshirt over my head but at least it was private. With my shorts and tshirt in place I checked myself over in the mirror. Pulling my ponytail a little tighter I flattened down a few stray hairs and left.

Stopping quickly in the office to drop off my library clothes into my over sized bag I left quietly with my waitressing things. With my apron on and pad in hand I take a deep breath checked my mental shields and step out into the dining room. Time to put my game face on.

As the hours dragged on and the bar filled up more and more Tara got crabbier with everyone, serving drinks with more attitude than she usually would. Sam was up and behind the bar by ten helping Tara, his strawberry blonde hair becoming more mussed as he ran his hands through it more and more as the crowds just never went away. Lafayette whilst still his fantabulous self was bouncing from order to order almost as fast as I was running from table to bar to serving window. As fast as I took an order I was serving the drinks to the table before last and then getting food for the one before that. My smile had gone from polite to crazy to edging on demented by the time midnight rolled around, something it seemed had been passed over by everyone in the bar.

Most of the patrons were again from the plant with many more of the town coming in to commiserate with them. From the sounds of it a third of the staff would be leaving within the month. Sam looked less than happy at that as did the rest of us. Less money in the community meant less money for local businesses which meant more lay offs. It was a vicious circle. I for one definitely couldn't afford to lose a single one of my jobs.

If I'd had anyone else working with me but Arlene the night would have been a lot worse. She was a veteran waitress, although heaven knows what would happen if you said that to her face, so although the pair of us were clearly overwhelmed being down a waitress (Dawn just didn't show) we managed just fine. Nothing was dropped and as fast as drinks hit trays or food came up on the window it was served. Nether of us stuck to our sections opting to pitch in on the other's if we needed to.

By midnight the kitchen was closed and cleaned but the bar still had a few patrons left. Sam took over the bar sending both Lafayette and Tara off into the night. They both promised to meet me at home at the end of my shift. I was planning on leaving my car for Gran whilst I was away just in case she needed it. Lafayette had a convertible so it was the obvious choice for our trip. It was more extravagant than anything anyone else drove in Bon Temps even if was a fair few years old.

With the night winding down it was easier for Arlene and I to keep to our sections, cleaning up the empty tables and booths when we got a quiet moment. Jane was propping up the bar like she did almost every night spinning some tale or other about her deceased husband. The stories she told were always crazy and you had to take them with a pinch of salt. She and her husband were like a bad country song either loving eachother hard or trying to kill eachother. I guess that was why she spent every night since his death in here lost in her memories with the aid of a bottle of Jack.

Dropping my mental shields I used my disability to get a read on those who were left. Most were gearing up to move, others dawdling over their drink trying to delay the inevitable and then there were a few like Jane who were more propping up the bar waiting for another drink than showing the willingness to locate the door. In all honesty I believe the only reason Jane goes home is because we close.

By one thirty the tables were clear. There were only a handful left sitting at the bar and even they were waiting on rides home. After a sweep around and a quick check that we hadn't missed anything in the booths Arlene and I split the tips evenly between us. We had both helped out the other tonight so it was only fair.

"Well we've definitely had a good night," Arlene exclaimed slipping her money into her purse.

"They worked us hard tonight though." I said slipping my own money out of sight.

"Yeah," Arlene yawned "but at least they tipped us. This will pay for the present I got put aside for Lisa's birthday and buy us some groceries." She stood up from her seat straightening out her shorts as she moved. "I guess that will come in handy for you on your trip. Will get you something sexy to wear for a night out or something." I smiled rising from my own seat as she shimmied her butt around. I waved to Jane's son who had come to usher her off home. He lifted his hand in greeting before gripping his mamma's arm as she stumbled. He deserved a sainthood. That man had been called out almost every night for the passed few years to take her home.

As the last person headed through the door I threw the lock and pulled both bolts before giving the dining room and bar one last once over. Nobody could ever claim I was lax in my duties. With just the small lights behind the bar illuminating the space it should have been hard for Arlene and I to make our way to the office but we were well practiced in seeing in the dark. With ease we made it to the back, Sam following us through with the nights takings bagged and ready for the safe. Tomorrow was bank day and also pay day. Sam had gracious allowed me mine the day before so I could cash it and pay a few bills before I left. The little bit that was left over I had given to Gran. The grocery store and the library both paid me on Fridays aswell but I managed to get my library pay check today to give to Gran since I wouldn't be there tomorrow and Saturday. The grocery store I would have to wait until I came back. Hopefully the money we already had would pay for any bills before I could cash it.

I slipped my tips into the side pocket of my oversized bag and fished around for my car keys. They never stayed where I had put them and even with the small light on in the office I could never see them. With a triumphant 'aha' I pulled them free of my bag catching one of the housekeys on my hair brush. I was almost across the threshold when Sam called me back.

"Hey Sookie." I smiled waiting for him to say what he needed to but he wrapped his arms around me instead. "You have fun and stay safe OK. I wanna hear all your stories when you get back." I wrapped my own cluttered arms around him holding a little tighter when he squeezed me tight.

"I will Sam. Don't worry I'll be back before you know it." _Smells so good._ I kept on smiling as I pulled back even as I heard him. Maybe Gran was right.

I left through the back door heading to my beat up old car. As I unlocked the door I waved goodbye to Arlene as she slowly drove passed me. Climbing into the car I spotted Sam stood in the open doorway the yellow light casting an eery colouring over him. He raised his hand to me as I started my car thankfully on the first try. I lifted the fingers on one hand keeping the thumb tucked against the steering wheel as I slowly backed out of my parking space.

By the time I pulled up behind the house I was feeling every one of the hours I had worked. My feet were sore and my back ached and I didn't think my limbs could feel as heavy as they did right now. I had around an hour before Lafayette and Tara arrived. My duffle bag was sitting beside the front door so all I had to do was drag it out once they got here. With that in mind I pulled out all the essentails from my bag and put them in the small handbag I was taking with me. It was the nicest bag that I had and was a gift from the Merlottes girls for my birthday last year. There was a small clutch in my bag for nights out but this one would do fine for during the day whilst we were out and about. I pulled out my paycheck from the library and tucked it under the phone in the kitchen. Gran knew it would be there but would see it as soon as she walked in the room anyways.

With that job done I crept up the stairs artfully dodging the creaks on the third and fifth steps. Once in my room I turned on the lamp before pulling out a tshirt and some shorts to change into. They weren't the shortest pair of shorts I owned sitting just above my knees but like all my shorts they had once been a pair of jeans that just kept getting cropped shorter and shorter.

I had no intention of sitting in that car smelling like grease and old beer for the whole drive so I took the hottest shower I could stand trying to keep it quick and trying to keep it quiet. Gran may have eluded a time or two that she wanted to wave us off but she needed to sleep and if I could keep her asleep I would.

With pink skin I towelled off and slipped into clean underwear and then my clean clothes keeping an ear (and my mind) on the drive out front. The hot water seemed to have loosened me up a bit and worked away some of the aches. I didn't want to use my hair dryer on my hair because of Gran so I resorted to towelling it off a few extra times before sticking it in a loose bun. I had a hat in my bag that we used to wear at Merlottes in the summer and that would keep any chill off me if we kept the roof down. It wouldn't be the greatest fashion accesory but it would serve its purpose.

With no sign of the others I picked up my uniforms and my towels and quietly took them to the laundry room downstairs. Checking the back door was locked (even out here in the middle of no where you can never be too careful) I grabbed a banana and an apple and headed to the front door. Picking up my bags I headed out the front door locking it behind me before I took a seat on the porch swing.

It was a peaceful night filled with all the bugs and critters. There was no breeze but the warmth wasn't too oppressive for this time of year. I sat back eating first my banana and then my apple staring at the star filled sky. After my parents and brother died Gran told me they had been taken up to heaven. I would look out of my window at night staring at the stars wondering which one was them.

I smile at my childhood thoughts before turning my head to the slowly moving convertible. The worn thin gravel barely made a sound as the tires slowly ran over it. Lifting my bags from where they sat at my feet I smiled at my two friends grateful they were as quiet as they were in respect for my Gran. Everyone loved my Gran but these two were always family. With Tara's alcoholic mother and Lafayette being shunned by pretty much everyone because he never hid his sexuality they had spent a lot of time here with Gran. As kids they had helped with chores around the house and neither ever balked when it was something basic for dinner. Tara especially was happy with anything, it being cooked was just icing on the cake.

"Hey," Tara whisper yelled as she opened up the trunk. "You ready?"

"Yeah. Yeah, I am."

"Sook you get in back, get some shut eye. Tara and me are good. We got a nap before we came for you and you worked a hell of a lot more hours today that we did." Laf was much more subdued that usual whether that was because he didn't want to be too loud because of Gran or if he was just that tired I wasn't sure.

"You sure. I don't mind keeping you company."

"We all good. Tara can take over if I get too tired. It's only a few hours and then we can get us some food." I climbed into the back seat smiling to him in the rear view mirror in thanks before settling my head against the door.

With our limited duffle bags in the boot of the car and a silent goodbye from each of us to the woman inside the rickety old farmhouse we set off down the road into inky blackness, towards our few days of freedom.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: So I learned that not backing up my story as I wrote it is a bad thing since my laptop crashed (again). Whilst parts of this are written by hand onto paper first very substantial parts are written straight from my head into the chapter as it develops. This meant that two weeks worth of time stolen to write went down the drain and I had to start again praying I remembered the huge chunks I had written thus far.

This is a bitesize something as a apology for the wait. It switches POV and gives a little taster as to what is to come.

Disclaimer: I own nothing from True Blood or the SS novels and I make nothing either. I just want to play around for a little bit.

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><p>I have not hunted like this for centuries. The urge is always there under my skin reaching for the surface for the chance to be free. I never allow it. I could never go back to those dark days. I could not return to the blending of time where all I cared for was the next kill, the next feed.<p>

This hunt I can do. It is easy, simple. It takes more strategy than a normal hunt. This one stretches through kingdoms. This one is important to more than just me. This comes from much higher than my position. I enjoy this one even as it frustrates me. How someone could be so still for so long, so predictable to now leaving what they know behind with none of my eyes knowing about it was unknown to me. I know where they are now though. I am getting closer.

I will have my prey soon enough.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: So this isn't as long as I wanted it to be but if I go any further it will reveal more than I intend to just yet. This would have come after the next Sookie POV but I don't think it would have worked as well so you get it now. It may answer a few questions.

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><p>Hunting is in our nature. It is part of what we are. It's the beast that claws at our insides desperate for release. Sex and blood but never satiated.<p>

Good hunters survive. Good hunters keep us a secret.

While hunting for our food is rarer now with the populations so dense it can still be enjoyable for some. The chance, the risk, the search. Humans care little for those who disappear in to the darkness. We do not always hunt the next meal. Some hunt other things, supernatural things, others hunt our own. Hunting one of our own is rarely done. Some do it for profit others for revenge.

Now I am hunting, searching. I had kept my eye on this one, spies feeding me the information I need to make risk assessments, to decide when to take action. Staying still doesn't mean you are stable and this one had shown signs for a long time. Even when the first signs arose I could never have predicted this.

Our entire species is under threat because of this one.  
>Leaving your home virtually unannounced is one thing, leaving a trail in your wake another.<p>

I can only assume that the time spent here had driven them mad. With the two of us sharing such long lives we had crossed paths from time to time. From the first time I had met him he had been charming and suave with a distinct disdain for humans. They were barely more than cattle to him. His brutality was more extreme when revealed from behind his polite facade. He turned his own progeny not long after I had turned my own and although our paths never crossed again until we were in the New World I had heard many stories.

As I aged and found balance between my two halves it appeared his hatred was growing. As he took the crown in Mississippi I kept eyes and ears on him. I knew it was only a matter of time before the hints at his madness became more pronounced.

Taking my position as Sheriff in Texas kept me close to my progeny and allowed me to share my theories and suspicions with a strong monarch. I shared what I could but never where or how I came about the information.

When Russell had disappeared seemingly overnight it had first been believed he had been taken. His progeny had sworn he was still alive but could tell us no more. Their bond was shut. When the Authority and the Mississippi vampires conducted their investigations Russell had left the country. By the time the Authority had declared that the King had left on his own by his own decision my ears had already picked up word that he was in Europe.

He had travelled back to the Old World.

Whether he had expected support in his view of the world or not he did not receive it. Whilst the vampires in the Old World tend to be older than those here and though many have very little respect for the human race most would favour their own survival over a short term freedom of the vampire law.

As Russell left travelling through Europe and the Middle East, through Asia and into Australia he left behind him a path of destruction and mayhem. He fed, he killed, he raped and destroyed bringing our very existence to the brink of discovery. For over a year the Authority was always a step behind him collecting the vampires he had turned and left. Most were feral and destroyed on sight, their own madness making them useless. The announcement of a reward for any vampire that caught him and death to any vampire that was caught aiding him did nothing to slow him down. He ran on his own network under his own steam and his own twisted beliefs.

A path was followed to South America though it was an obvious rouse. He had planted his depraved offspring on a cargo ship. Whilst we tracked the destruction on the ship and on the docks on both sides of the ocean he had fled to Canada intent on continuing his path of destruction unheeded.

We lost track of him again in Canada. As soon as members of the Authority on Canadian soil had been mobilised he had vanished again leaving them with more mess. Never in the history of our race had so many humans required such extensive glamour to cover up an incident.

Russell's lover and progeny became the key. As soon as he left the Mississippi compound it was easy to catch Russell's trail again even with his progeny going elsewhere. Russell had travelled down into New York, stayed long enough to catch a show and have bite to eat leaving a half full diner covered in blood and gore before travelling to Pennsylvania. From there he started his cross country travels spending a night in each state before moving on leaving more dead behind him. Seven failed attempts at turning were found, each one left in a more brutal state than the last. His mind was slipping fast.

The last sign of Russell had been in Vegas where he had ripped out the spine of an Elvis impersonator conducting a wedding. He had fled the scene taking to the sky infront of more witnesses than any one could bear to admit to with the groom in his arms. The moment word had gotten out of his exploits I called my children to me. If this was to be the moment our existence was to be revealed to the world I wanted to see that they were safe with my own eyes. I may know that they are strong enough and more than intelligent enough to survive without me as they had done for some time I could not help but want to see this change in with them by my side.

I was not the only one calling to my progeny.

The moment that Russell's childe Talbot crossed the Texas border I was informed and when he drove into Dallas and booked himself into an expensive hotel suite I knew within seconds.

Whilst there had been no obvious sign of Russell in my area I had everyone put on high alert. With no sightings and no unexplained deaths that were more supernatural cover up than natural causes the vampires of my area and those surrounding it remained on high alert. Several hunting parties were already on the streets.

My oldest child and I debated strategy breaking the city down into search zones whilst trackers scoured the city for the smallest hint of Russell's presence. A call came in that Talbot had left his hotel. He was on the street and walking seeming calm as he took in the sights. Two of my subordinates continued to follow him.

Eric and I left my nest taking to the skies and flying the opposite direction to which Talbot was travelling. We were high above the city when I was called again. They had lost him. It took an hour for the scent to be picked up again by which time we already knew of the abduction of a young woman from a night club. Her friends had told the officers that they had been stood with her one second, she had been laughing with them bouncing to the music and in a blink she had been gone. Several club goers had 'volunteered' information to my childe and I regarding what they saw, Russell with a blonde woman struggling in his arms as he ducked out a side door.

The trail was now hot and there was no way I was letting it run cold in my area.


	4. Chapter 4

So I'm an idiot. Not too long ago I came on here and uploaded the next chapter of this story. I then went about my business and kept on writing. Having not received any reviews I got a little worried but I continued on. Unfortunately life got in the way of any writing (as it wants to do) and when I came back to the next chapter I didn't like it. I spent some time reworking it before giving up entirely and starting again. Still I felt a little discouraged having not heard anything at all neither bad nor good until I spotted an email with a review. After reading it I was puzzled as to why the reviewer had stopped at the third chapter and not continued on. After investigating I realised that yes I had loaded the chapter into the manager but not actually added it to the story hence I'm an idiot.

So here is the chapter that I meant to load up.

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><p>Despite the heavy set exhaustion that seemed to settle into my bones as we crossed the town line I only managed to sleep for two hours. I woke fuzzy minded and unable to pull up my mental shields for a few seconds. The flash of Tara having sex with Sam was enough for me to get them up and locked in place. I didn't think I would ever be able to look Sam in the face again.<p>

I sat up mindful of the crick in my neck from being asleep in such an awkward position and took a look around. I knew we would have crossed the border by now but I wasn't sure how far from Dallas we were. Looking around you wouldn't have thought it was so early in the morning. There were lots of other cars around going both directions.

"Hey there Sook. You sleep good?" came Lafayette's smooth voice from the driver's seat.

"Yeah. I guess I needed that."

"That don't surprise me Sookie. How you can still be standing at the end of a shift at the bar is a miracle." Tara said twisting in her seat. She gave me the once over her mouth pursing up at my crumpled state.

"Some days are worst than others. I miss anything?"

"I got honked at by some nasty ass Truck driver."

"No I got honked. Man wanted himself some Lala sugar." A laugh erupted from my chest, doubling me over as Lafayette puckered his lips at himself in the rear view mirror. I could still feel the usual edge of exhaustion but it felt less now somehow.

The two of them bickered back and forth hurling insults that were never meant to hurt in that way I assumed only family could. I can faintly remember my brother and I on Gran's yard calling each other piggies or bugger face or something. Gran always called a stop to it just as she would when these two got started on each other. She too knew they weren't being malicious in what they said, they were just venting with the one person who would understand and give back as good as they got.

"What you smilin' at back there?" Lala asked watching me through the rear view mirror.

"Just you two. And how much you llluuurrrrrvvvve each other." The look on their faces as I said it heavy on my Louisiana accent was enough to crack me up again. They both looked at each other like I was crazy before laughing along too although I suspect they were more laughing at me than with me.

Driving to Dallas was still exhausting even though I had a short nap. I had no clue how the two of them did it having spent so much at time on their feet rushing around like they had. We did stop shortly after I woke for them to swap over.

By the time we rolled the car into a parking space we were all a little wiped but the excitement seemed to wash it away. Breakfast was at what could only be considered a dive. The booths had red leather seats that had worn thin and cracked and split with age. They were comfortable at least and the food really was amazing. It had been recommended by one of Lafayette's associates. He never said anything more about this person but I knew the different ways that Lafayette supplemented his income. I never pried both verbally and otherwise but I knew why Lafayette worked as hard as he did and in the ways that he did even if no one else, Tara included, did.

Breakfast was a mix of good conversation, good food and good silences where we dug in to our eggs and bacon and hash browns and pancakes. I don't think any of us had eaten as much in one sitting in a long time and if we took complete advantage of the free refills of the coffee to an outrageous extent well no one said anything.

Our waitress was like a blonde Arlene asking us questions as she refilled our cups giving us some tourist advice before she would swing off to another table. Our cups barely ever ran down and each time she was there with her sunshine smile. I made sure we left her a good tip. We all knew all too well the difference a good tip could make.

Afterwards we headed to our hotel room. Tara and I were sharing and Lala was just through an adjoining door. We split the cost of the two rooms three ways just to be fair to everyone. They weren't the highest class hotel rooms and they weren't the ones we were originally going to stay in but they were clean and had two queen sized beds aswell as a small dinette and a flat screen tv. The colours were muted and plain but it meant the small room didn't look fussy or over done. The tiny bathroom only had a shower but it was big enough and, as I discovered before we headed out for some window shopping, had amazing pressure.

The window shopping didn't stay window shopping for Lafayette but we had lots of fun watching his little makeshift fashion show. The store we found was on some side street full of boutiques and beauty parlours. It was a mix of vintage, consignment and souvenir clothing and accessories with a large glass counter filled to the brink with jewellery. The window was full of a mix of odds and ends. There was a gold birdcage that looked vintage even if it possibly wasn't filled with hats all stacked topsy turvy and opaque glass dishes full of rings and bracelets. The whole place was a contrast in colour and theme but it seemed to work with the quirky contents.

Lafayette had managed to pull the little brunette girl that was working there into our fun and she was almost as happy to help Lala strut his stuff as she was to ring up his purchases. She was quiet and shy at first, as most people are under Laf's enthusiasm, but she soon brightened up making wild suggestions to him.

A makeshift walk way was made between the single fitting room hidden behind a huge gilded mirror at the back of the store and the front door. The heavy wooden table at the front of the shop couldn't be moved so that became the end. Everytime Lafayette reached the table he would pick up one of the shoes displayed on it and sigh before turning back to us. It made me smile every time.

Lafayette's infectious optimism soon had us trying hats and scarves with him. He took great pleasure in wrapping up the sales girl. When a strange look passed over her face I shifted my shields to take a peak but found that she was a little jealous and a lot curious as to how he stayed so full of energy. After years of listening to the disparaging thoughts of our local community when it came to Lafayette's lifestyle choices I have to admit I am a little over protective. Given Lafayette is twice my size and looks like he could take down any narrow minded individual with a flick of his finger, never mind his sharp tongue, made no difference.

At the end of the fashion show I tidied up as much as I could while Tara and Lafayette went goo goo over the stuff in the counter aswell as all the tops and scarves and who knows what else that was piled on top. The girl gave me a grateful smile as we left calling out our thanks. There was still lots to be put away but she was definitely all smiles.

The sun was already getting low in the sky (the length of time we spent in that one shop was unbelievable) so we grabbed Chinese food from a place she had recommended. There were no Chinese restaurants in Bon Temps. There was one place to buy pizza and that was about it other than Merlottes and we didn't even do take out. It meant if you wanted to not cook you had to go out.

I'd never had Chinese food so I let Tara and Lafayette choose for me. It was a risk but I trusted them. They had been out to Shreveport more times than I could count spending all night at one club or another or propping up a bar until they went home with someone. It meant they'd had much more of an opportunity to sample every culinary delight from around the world at least enough to form an opinion.

The restaurant was as cliche as possible. Red and gold paper lanterns hung from the ceiling, ceramic cats sat on shelves beside intricately painted vases filled with bamboo. The tables and chairs were thankfully mediocre wood painted a rich brown. There was no table cloth, it wasn't that kind of place.

The walls were a bright red making the white of the ceiling seem overly bright. The floor was carpeted what looked to have once been a red that matched the walls only now it was so stained and dirty it looked burgundy in places.

The food was great and I savoured every mouthful. I had no idea what it was only that it was noodles in some sort of sauce with vegetables and chicken. We never ate like this at home and if the lay offs from the plant affected us all like I thought I'd be lucky to pay the bills at all let alone buy food. The guilt I felt at enjoying a treat without Gran threatened to spoil my good mood.

"Do you know what Gran is doing right now?" Tara asked as the waitress put down our drinks.

"I dunno. It's Friday so I guess a bath and her book with a slice of pie maybe some ice cream if there was any left." I knew Gran's routine down to a T just like she knew mine.

"Nope," she said around a mouthful of chicken. I sat up straight. I ran my head over everything that could have needed doing before I left but I came up blank. Confused I looked at both her and Lafayette the question obvious on my face. "Sam invited her to the bar. He told her she could have anything she wanted on the house and he would pick her up and take her home whenever she wanted. " I looked at Tara's face looking for lie but there was none. I was shocked. I knew Sam was a nice guy and all but that was a bit above and beyond.

"Why?" Tara just shrugged.

"Dunno. He asked me if I thought it was a good idea and I said she might like the company."

"Both of you are always so busy. We are looking after you's and Sam will look after Gran." Lafayette interjected before stabbing into his food. I smile mostly because I'm not sure what kind of reaction I should have to that. Should I be angry with my friends for caring about me and about Gran? Should I be grateful to not have to worry about her?

"And Sam has had a crush on you since you started working at the bar. Gettin' in Gran's good books is in his best interest." Tara added with a slight quirk of her eyebrow. The mischievous look in her eye was mirrored in Lafayette's.

"If Sam wants to be in your panties he definitely needs to be in Gran's good books." I gasped as he spoke tossing my napkin at him.

"Lafayette!" I knew I sounded scandalized but I was. To think so many people around me thought all these things was shocking. Even more so that I hadn't picked up on a single bit of it.

"There is nothing going on with Sam and I."

"Yet." Lafayette added digging back into his food with his chopsticks. I huffed both at his comment and at the fact he was using the chopsticks flawlessly. I had tried but gave up after a few spectacularly bad failures.

It was late in the evening by the time we crawled out of the restaurant the day's purchases in hand. I was so full the thought of walking to the hotel was unbearable. All three of us would be more equipped to be rolled back with how stuffed we were. I laughed at my thoughts causing both Tara and Lafayette to look at me.

"Just thinking we should be rolled back to the hotel with how much we ate." They both made affirmative noises. We walked side by side all the way back to the hotel passing people who had already started drinking and those who looked set for a good time dressed to the nines. We too were supposed to be painting the town red. I'd found myself a lovely white dress with red flowers in one of the many stores we had wandered through that I was going to wear tonight though I hadn't been looking to buy anything. The combination of too little sleep and all that good food made the thought of crossing the hotel lobby and climbing in an elevator seem like too much work. Judging by the looks of my companions reflected back at me on the elevator doors I wasn't the only one.

"Did we waste today?" Tara asked as we opened our hotel room door Lafayette following us in.

"I don't think so. We had fun and bought some things. We've had good food, _lots_ of good food and haven't done a stick of work between us." I groaned as I flopped back on my bed. The waist band of my shorts was diggin into my bloated belly but the thought of moving to alleviate it was too much. I'm more relaxed than I can ever remember being and even though most of the day was spent eating and watching everyone else try things on I feel tired. Not weary tired like I usually am when I crawl into bed at who knows what o'clock but the good kind. The day well spent, fully enjoyed kind.

"OK. I just didn't want us to have blown a day when we could have been doing something. Tomorrow night we are going out." I chuckled at Lafayette's affirmative hmm hmm. It wouldn't surprise me if he got dressed up and went out without us anyways.

"I am going to leave you lovelies to get your beauty sleep. You's gonna need it to keep up with me." I laughed as Laf disappeared through the dividing door his hand raised in some sort of waving gesture. Rolling to my side I looked at Tara. She was laid out on her bed star fished out staring at the ceiling.

"You OK?" I asked quietly.

"I'm OK. Just." She shrugged like it was an answer and it was. I knew what she meant. This wasn't our life so it was a strange thing. We worked and we got ridiculed and then I went to my next job and Tara went home to a drunk momma and a dirty house. Here it was just us. No place to be if we didn't want to be there no one calling on us to do this and that. It was nice. I liked it even if staying still on the bed was beginning to make my muscles twitch.

Rolling off the bed I headed to my bag. Rummaging through I grabbed a tank and some shorts before disappearing into the bathroom. By the time I emerged feeling a little cleaner and lot tired Tara had already changed and was half heartedly flicking through the channels on the T.V.

As I collapsed into my bed blankets wrapped around my waist she slunk off to the bathroom. I closed my eyes and snuggled down into the bed more letting the laughing track of whatever show Tara had left on lull me to sleep.

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><p>The one thing I didn't think about when planning this trip was the hotel. Or to the point a hotel full of people the moment I open my eyes. Most mornings it takes me a few minutes to put up what I call my mental shields. They are what I create to help me not hear everything everyone within an x radius is thinking about. Most mornings the only person within my mind's limits is Gran. This morning there are hundreds of people asleep and awake all clawing at my brain. I went from soft warm and languid to curled up in a ball, hands pulling at my hair to try to stop the pain.<p>

It went on and on as I fought with every fibre of my being to just block them somehow. I must have cried out, must have made some kind of noise to wake Tara as I felt her hands on my arms just above my elbows. They were clenching tight, too tight making my arms ache but it gave me something to focus on. Thinking about the pain in my arms stopped me thinking about the pain in my head. I could hear Tara over and over her mind soothing even though it was frantically bouncing from one thing to the next but always coming back to how to help me. Every thing I could spare focused on her mind as I put up my shields bit by bit. With each part the voices got smaller and Tara's got thicker. She was remembering something the words a whisper before I saw the flicker of an image, of me.

We were teenagers the last time she had to do this. Barely thirteen and overwhelmed by the thoughts of all the students and faculty around me and she had squeezed me tight until I could calm myself down. I didn't have shields back then, that took a bit of reading in the psychology and the sci fi section in the library to learn, but I did have a sort of way of blocking it even back then. It just didn't work so well. The image of me then blurred into me now and I looked a mess.  
>Gripping her arms in the same place that she was holding mine I smiled at her trying to let her know I was OK.<p>

"I'm so sorry. I never thought about your thing and all the people and what was gonna happen. God I'm a fuck up." She went to stand yanking her hands from my arms but I held onto her holding her down.

"Hey no no. I didn't think about it either. It never occurred to me something like this could happen." I smiled when she deflated a bit. She was still tense and I was really exhausted.

"You bitches OK?" Laf asked from the connecting door. We both nodded. He humphed and muttered something as he span away in all his silk robe glory. How he had a better wardrobe than any woman I knew I'd never know.

After a few deeps breaths I ran my hand through my sweat ridden hair snagging on a knot before I got away from my crown. I slipped my hand free and took another breath. I was sure I looked like death warmed over, I sure felt it, but Tara smiled at me anyways. With a swift tug from her arm I was up and on my feet even if I did sway slightly. Tara's left hand ended up between my shoulder blades guiding me towards the bathroom. She slipped away into Laf's room once I was moving on my own. I could hear them talking as I closed the door. I knew it was about me. I felt bad that I had essentially spoilt the second day of our time away.

Starting the water I stared at my reflection. My hair was a rat's nest sticking up every which way and there were dark circles under my eyes. I wasn't too concerned about them. They had always been there. I couldn't remember a time when they weren't there. The lines of pain were new though. I hadn't had lines like that around my head since I was young. Their reappearance didn't bode too well on my confidence.

The room was starting to fill with steam so I slipped off my tank top and shorts and stepped under the spray. It was hot almost unbearably hot but after a few moments the tension started to leave my shoulders. Bit by bit the water eased the tension in my body til I was lazily moving my shampoo around rather than scrubbing myself clean. My mind moved as lazily as my hands.

It had been some time since my last 'episode'. It may not have been the same, the minds were those of the children's book club a dozen strong, but the embarrassment was the same and so was the fear. Each time I feared the next time it would happen. Would that be the time I couldn't make it back? Would that time be when I lost myself in a sea of voices?

I scrubbed my hands over my face digging the heel of my palm against my eyes. I couldn't think like this, not now, not ever.

Dipping my head under the spray I let the water wash away the shampoo and my thoughts before I reached for my soap.

By the time I stepped out of the shower wrapped in a towel that was bigger than I was I felt marginally better. With a swipe at the condensation on the mirror I could see my distorted reflection. I looked better. I wouldn't say I looked good. It would take at least a thousand more hours sleep for that to happen but I looked better than I did before. The pain lines are fainter now and though the dark circles are still there they don't look as prominent against my flushed skin.

Stepping out of the bathroom something collided with my face causing me to stumble back as I plucked it away.

"Get dressed. We leave in ten so get your cute little behind in gear." I looked down at the crumpled garment in my hands. It was a simple pale yellow sundress I wore on the rare occasion I made it to church on a Sunday. I only packed it because it was one of the best dresses I owned and I'd had no clue about what I was going to be doing when I got here.

I sighed but turned back around to go back to the bathroom. The pale colour washes me out even with the flush still on my cheeks from the shower. With the door open just a touch I can hear them talking but the words are so low all I can make out is the muttering tone. I could just slip my shields down again but I daren't, not yet. The echo of that pain was still resting against the inside of my skull and I had no intentions of making it worse.

Slipping out of the bathroom I followed the muted sounds of their voices through the connecting door and into Lafayette's room. It looked like his duffle bag had exploded over every surface. There were scarves and earrings on the lampshades, shirts draped over the single chair and over the dresser there were what looked like jeans and a couple of fish net somethings in neon colours. It sort of looked like Lafayette's living room only without the deity statues.

The moment they saw me they stopped talking. It took one guess that I was the subject of their conversation.

"I'm OK guys. A little headache but that will pass." When the worry didn't leave their eyes I tried again. "Really I am."

After way too much negotiating on just where we were going to eat we headed out for breakfast. It was the same place we went to when we arrived with the same waitress and the same booth with the cracked leather seats. The food was exactly as good as the day before only every bite I took was watched with worried eyes.

"Will you stop. I said I was fine."

"Hmm just like you is fine at the end of a shift at the bar after working at the library all day or just like you is fine on a Sunday when you can barely get out of bed because you are so exhausted?"

"Or how you've dropped ten pounds you didn't have to lose in the first place 'cos you've been too exhausted to have an appetite fine?"

"No fine as in everything is how it should be," I whirled my finger indicating my head, "and I'm on vacation, my first vacation ever, and I'm not spoiling it because of a little headache." Neither of the looked any more convinced than they had been up to that point so I gave up. I couldn't force them to change their minds and whilst I would normally try and try and try today was my last full day of vacation. I wasn't losing out on account of anything. With that in mind I took a hearty sip of the black nectar in my cup and took another forkful of bacon.

"What are we doing today?" I asked after swallowing, stuffing another forkful of food into my mouth as soon as the words were out. Gran would have had a few things to say about it but I wasn't the only one at the table doing it. In truth with my headache fading away I was beginning to discover how hungry I was. After the amount of food we ate last night I wasn't sure I would need to eat again until we got home but it seemed my stomach had other things in mind.

"It's a surprise."

"A surprise?" I slowly put down my cutlery. I'd never had a surprise before. It's pretty much impossible to surprise me. I flicked my eyes from one to the other trying to keep up my shields. I was excited to have a surprise.

"No peaking." Tara said pointing her knife at me. I lifted my hands palms up in defence.

"I'm trying not to. Just don't think about it too much. I kinda like the idea of a surprise." I smiled to myself shifting in my seat as I lifted my cutlery digging back into my food. This might be fun. It would be hard work but it would be another first for me even if it was one I would only be able to share with a few.

Not listening kept me distracted through the rest of breakfast and through the majority of the car ride. I kept a passive eye on the streets and the people we passed. The calm laid back aura of Bon Temps was replaced with a hurried gait I always pictured in big cities. Everyone had somewhere they needed to be even at the weekend although every now and then I'd catch sight of a couple or a family on the street or in their car looking like true weekend lovers.

I thought about what Tara had said. I knew what she meant by the lost weight. My face didn't have the softness of youth but the start of sharp angles and prominent bone. To anyone who didn't know me I guess they wouldn't look too bad but to my friends I guess they were the sign that things were taking their toll. And in truth they were. Physically shaking away the gloom I smiled at a little girl skipping with her Daddy before turning away.

As we stopped at another red light I spotted the fourth sign for the zoo. I'd barely glanced at the first but with each one I saw I noticed we were following the same direction.

"Are we going to the zoo?" The dual groan from the front seat was startling.

"You said you wouldn't peak!" Tara turned in her seat glaring at me.

"I didn't. I swear." My hands having a mind of their own flew up in front of me.

"Then how?"

"Baby girl has eyes T," Lafayette said tipping his head towards the sign beside the stop light.

"Well damn," was all Tara muttered as she dropped back into her seat. "We got further than I thought we would."

"Hey!" I shouted as the two of them erupted into laughter just as the light turned green.


	5. Chapter 5

AN: Yes I am putting up two chapters today.

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><p>Dallas isn't Bon Temps. I know that. It didn't stop the press of people as we moved through the zoo be any less strange. The bar was crowded but this would never happen at home on the street. We had nothing like this. Mothers with babies in strollers, hoards of school age children running around in little groups, harried looking adults clutching onto hands as they tried to keep up and keep control. OK so that one wasn't completely abnormal. That was probably a constant everywhere.<p>

There was supposed to be a school trip when I was maybe nine or ten to a zoo but the funding fell through. Very few in the town could afford the full cost for their child aswell as the travel fees and no amount of bake sales could acrue that kind of money. Some filmed documentary by some British guy was shown instead although next to no one watched it.

Seeing these animals if not necessarily up close but at least in person was like watching a television in colour after a lifetime of black and white. Books in the library couldn't compete with these beautiful animals and the demonstrations and the talks that were offered.

Tara wasn't interested in the talks or the feeding times but Lafayette was interested in a few of the staff giving them so it made up for it. His declarations of beautiful were of a different sort to mine however.

I had called this the trip of a lifetime. My lifetime so far didn't lend itself to many trips and I had no delusions that things would get drastically easier for Gran and myself in the coming years for that to change. I truly doubted that I would ever be able to do what I'd done to afford this trip again for a long time maybe even ever. Life wasn't getting cheaper and Gran wasn't getting any younger. So far though this was great.

I had my friends and new memories outside of our little town. After a few stores and a few animals (aswell as a few crazies on the road) in a place that wasn't Renard Parish and I felt like everyone else. I felt normal for once in my short life. No one was watching me out of the corner of their eye. No one was pulling their hands away from mine in case they caught the crazy.

The animals were a rollercoaster. The tortoise exhibition filled me with such tranquility and such awe yet the tigers made the hair stand up on the back of my neck as they paced. The bugs made my skin crawl which sent Laf into hysterics as I shuddered away from them.

I had always wanted to travel. Stories of characters crossing seas and travelling on ancient trains over huge distances made me long to see what was out there. I hated the cold but I wanted to know what knee deep snow looked and felt like. I wanted to feel grains of foreign beaches between my toes and see the hazy shimmer of heat over dunes of sand. If walking from exhibit to exhibit was the closest I was ever going to get I was going to cherish every second. It meant that I kept my pace slow and spent a large amount of time at every single animal. It wasn't the first time that I wished I had a camera.

Places like this were rarely cheap but every time I tried to mention it one of the two of them would give me the stink eye. Finally giving in I decided to buy lunch. The food didn't have Lafayette's flair and sass but it was still good. Eating barbeque whilst watching the lions was probably the most surreal moment of my life.

"They are a lot lazier than I imagined they'd be," I said as I stared at the male laid out on a rock in the sun.

"A guy sitting around doing nothing whilst the women do everything. That's real different." I snorted at Tara's comment almost choking on my mouthful of food. Needing a drink of water I tried not to cough on the food now lodged in my throat as I twisted the cap from the bottle.

"Honey I am not your lunch and this here is my lunch so git." I followed Lafayette's gaze to see the male staring straight towards us his huge pink tongue working over his lips. Tara's sudden laughter diverted both our attention.

"Looks like men of all species want Laf's man meat." The small area was soon filled with our cackling as Lafayette ignored us continuing to eat with the occasional shaking of his head.

I took over the driving on the way back to the hotel. I'd barely moved the car when the two of them fell asleep. Following the steady crawl of cars leaving the zoo my body was filled with a mix of exhaustion and happiness. This late in the day I was typically dealing with an ache between my shoulder blades and a bone deep pain in my legs. Switching from job to job would only make the pain worse. Now everything buzzed pleasantly. It felt like static electricity was dancing along my skin. I desperately needed a nap but I didn't think I had smiled like this in forever.

Weaving through the city's streets was a lot easier in Lafayette's car compared to my own clunk. The engine may have vibrated like a lawnmower rather than purr like it probably once did but it did take corners without needing the wheel wrenched sharply. My arms were very grateful.

Pulling into a space I turned off the ending stifling a laugh when Lafayette snorted himself awake. It was the most un-elegant sound I had ever heard him make. I must not have hidden it very well as he was staring at me, one perfect eyebrow arched.

"What did I miss?" Tara said from behind me the words swallowed in a yawn.

"Nothing," I replied quickly diving from the car. I put a little speed into my walk keeping my eyes forward. Even as I fought to keep the laughter in I could feel my shoulders shaking.

"Nu uh Miss Thang you get back here," came Lafayette's voice from much closer than I imagined it could have been.

I took off at a run clutching at my hand bag to me with my left hand. Laughter bubbled out of me with each step. Lafayette was of course much larger than myself. He quickly closed the distance wrapping his muscle bound arms around my waist. I laughed harder as my feet left the concrete and he continued walking towards the hotel. My laughter was echoing back at me from around the parkling lot.

"Now tell me why you were laughing? It's rude to laugh at people Sookie." Even as he spoke I could hear the smile in his voice and feel the faint tremor of laughter against my back.

I wiggled my feet trying to get purchase on a surface I knew I wouldn't possibly find. I took a deep breath trying to calm the giggles enough to speak. It did little to help but I felt like I could actually say words instead of laugh.

"You," I pushed out already descending into laughter with the mere thought of the indignified sound Laf had made.

_I can't remember her laughing like this_

The unintentional thought was like a cool bucket of water over me. I stiffened sobering up, the mood shifting between us instantly. Lafayette whispered an apology as he lowered me back down the gentle teasing gone from his voice. Swallowing the disappointment in my curse disrupting my life again I searched inside of myself for the joy I had felt only moments before. Smiling I turned to him wrapping my arms around his torso. He was too tall for me to do much else. There was tension all along his back but it melted away as I whispered that it was OK.

"Are you two done making a spectacle of yourselves cos I want a nap and a shower. I smell like a wild animal."

"You are a wild animal." Laf sasssed back taking away one of his arms as he turned me and led me towards the hotel.

"No that's you Lafayette."

"And don't you forget it." he replied flipping the tail end of his head scarf over his shoulder.

Tara walked off ahead muttering something about crazy people.

As the elevator climbed our energy levels seemed to fall. The bar around the walls was the only thing keeping us standing but we were all smiling. They were tired but happy smiles.

The doors opened revealing our floor. One foot in front of the other. It was a thought and motion I was more than familiar with. This time though it was an exhaustion from a great day.

Tara had already opened our room door when I reached it. I was thankful. It meant that I could keep moving through the door and straight to my bed. In a more than practiced move I dropped face first onto the bed. The bed was a lot less lumpy than the one I was used to back home and as my body fell into sleep I sank further into it's comfort.

I woke to the stuttered snort snore from the next bed. Lifting my head away from the bed's comforter I looked over to Tara. She had turned onto her stomach and had starfished across the bed. Her face was smushed into the comforter making her face all puffy and distorted.

I rose quietly blinking my dry eyes as I slipped off the bed and to the open adjoining door. Lafayette was sitting upright at the head of the bed an open magazine on his bent legs.

Crawling onto the bed I sat beside him my head propped on his silk covered shoulder. The magazine seemed to be some sort of high fashion mag. It was definitely one I wasn't familiar with. The room was silent aside for the gentle wisp of the magazine pages being turned.

Every girl in the magazine was so beautiful and so flawless it almost hurt to look at them. I knew they were airbrushed to make them more 'perfect' and that most of them are plagued by a deep seeded host of insecurities causing them never ending problems. It was something I could relate to without the beauty part.

"Do you know where we are going tonight?" I whispered. I doubted I would wake Tara but I didn't want to disturb the silence we had seemed to wrap around ourselves.

"A club I was told about," he replied just as quietly. His deep rumbling voice vibrated through me the sensation pleasant. Smiling I twisted my head around to look up at him.

"How'd you find it?" I asked. I knew how he had found out a quick flash of chocolate coloured eyes filling my mind.

"Whilst you two's were getting your beauty sleep I headed downstairs. There was a fine looking thing working behind the bar. We got to talking and he told me all about it. It sounds good."

I was about to say more when Tara shuffled into the room dropping into the narrow gap beside me flopping her head down onto my shoulder.

"What you doin'?" She mumbled before releasing a jaw creaking yawn.

"Talkin' about where we are going tonight."

"Yeah?" She yawned again. "Where?"

"Warehouse." Lafayette said distracted.

"A warehouse?" Tara screeched jumping upright.

"Yep. It's a club called warehouse that's in a warehouse. Supposedly it's fabulous. Great music, great drinks and a bunch of fine lookin' men."

"Hmmmm. Better not be all gay men." Tara grumbled as she climbed back onto the bed.

I stayed perfectly still as Lafayette swept the brush across my eyelids. It had been a long time since we had done this. Last time it was purely for fun and was followed by ice cream. This time was different. This time there would be music and dancing and other people.

"Open," I flicked my eyes open at his command. Lafayette's mouth was all twisted up on one side as he looked me.

"I am fabulous. You were pretty before but now you are bootiful." He sauntered away to the mirror on the other side of the bathroom door. Lafayette adjusted his purple tank and shifted his belt buckle before blowing a kiss at his reflection. "You ain't got nothing on me sugar but you will definitely turn heads."

He held out his hand to me and I rose carefully on my borrowed heels. Lafayette had bought them for Tara to wear but she handed them over to me instead. They did look good even if they were impossibly high for me to walk in on the plush carpet.

Lafayette's hand settled around my shoulders pulling me to the mirror before coming around to stand behind me. There in the mirror before me was someone I didn't recognise. Gone was the drab and dreary Sookie. Where there was once flat hair there was now spiral curls that framed my face. The dull blonde was now vibrant and bold. The dark circles and sunken eyes were now big, bright blue eyes framed with long elegant eyelashes. My dress fit my body hugging my waist before flaring out over my hips. My legs looked slender and shapely. I looked amazing. I felt amazing. I hadn't looked or felt this good at our prom. Feeling the prickle of tears I tried to blink them away.

"Na, uh you stop that." I met Laf's eye in the mirror as he squeezed my shoulders as I smiled even if my eyes were still a little watery. I mouthed a thank you not knowing if my voice would break if I tried to speak. He seemed to understand smiling at me through the mirror before blowing a kiss at me.

Tara burst out of the bathroom breaking our little moment. Tara's coral flowing tank was teamed with white shorts and pair of jewelled flats looked a lot different to my own dress. If I didn't know she was more at home in that then a dress like my own I would have felt nervous about being dressed right.

Heading to the bed and the small bag I had placed there I smiled at the grumblings from behind me. Peering over my shoulder I looked just in time to see Laf hip check Tara away from the mirror batting his eye lashes at her as he swiped at the edge of his lips with his pinky finger.

Passing the bickering duo I gave Tara a hip check of my own before walking out the door and down the narrow hallway. A slender arm wrapping around my shoulders for a brief squeeze before sliding away was all the warning I had that Tara had followed me out.

"You ready for this?"

"As I'll ever be," I smiled at her as she stepped ahead towards the elevator. When she was only a few steps away a larger arm came around me.

_Time to dance and have fun baby girl_

* * *

><p>AN: In the next chapter we will finally have Sookie and the vampires meet.<p> 


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: Thankyou so much to all the wonderful people who have reviewed so far and a thankyou to everyone who has read this at all in truth. Everytime I see a notification that I have had another review my heart ends up in my throat and I do this funny squint thing when I read them. I know reading them through one squinty eye won't change what they say but I always expect them to be negative. It's the pessimist part of me.

This chapter is a little different. It switches between Sookie and Godric. It wasn't going to be like this. It originally was going to be two chapters but the thought of having to repeat everything was infuriating so whilst there may be a little over lap now and then it's nothing too excessive.

On another note I have two characters (Russell and Godric) speak another language. I was going to use a translator and put it all in German but then I would have to either put the English beside it in brackets or have it at the end of the chapter in an author's note. Both of those seemed a little frustrating one for me and the other to the reader and the chances I would get an incorrect translation were pretty high so it literally has (In German) just before it. If people would prefer me to do it one of the other two ways I don't mind going back in and changing it.

I hope you enjoy. 

* * *

><p>*-*-*-SOOKIE*-*-*-<br>As we weaved through the blocks I tried to keep track of businesses and land marks so I could find my way back. Lafayette was driving with ease, cruising through the streets as though this was Bon Temps. I envied his laid back one handed driving technique. How he could be so confident in unfamiliar surroundings was astounding.

I had volunteered to drive back knowing that of the three of us I was the one least likely to drink and out of the three of us I was definitely the one to leave alone.

I could tell we were getting close before the heavy bass of the music reached my ears. The streets, if they could be called that, around here had couples and small groups dressed to party meandering their way towards the music. Laf pulled in beside a black sports car keeping a fair distance away on the broken ground.

I climbed out of the back seat carefully keeping a hand on the hem of my dress just in case. I definitely didn't want to be flashing anyone anything. I stumbled on the uneven ground but I caught myself before I fell. These shoes seemed to only be good on perfectly flat, perfectly even ground.

"You gonna be good Sook? I don't want to end up in ER tonight cos you broke your ankle in those heels," Laf asked looking me over from head to toe before stopping at my heel clad feet. He looked me in the eyes his head bowed, his eyebrow raised.

"I'll be fine. Just don't drink too much. I don't think I could carry you back to the car."

"You won't be taking me back to the hotel sugar. Don't you worry about that." I laughed as we began to walk my arm looped in his and Tara flanking me on my right.

We weren't too far behind a group of men, the occasional hoot and holler floating back to us but most of what they said was just mutters and murmurs. One of them did keep turning around, his eye stuck on Tara even if she did seem to be slightly oblivious. Slipping my arm through hers I tipped my head towards the guy just as he turned around again. His face lit up when he saw her looking at him but all she did was scowl at him. She kept her eyes narrowed as he turned around walking backwards for a few steps before turning back around that same smile on his face.

As we got closer to the club I could feel the sudden press of minds against my walls. My steps faltered but Laf and Tara held me up while my feet got under me again. It took a few deep breaths for me to re-enforce my shields before I felt myself again, the buzz fading from me.

I looked up at the concrete and metal building. It seemed much too big to be just a club but I guess bigger meant more customers and more money. I guess Dallas didn't really have a limited population number to contend with.

Only when the group of men stop walking do I realise we are at the end of the line to go in. All I could see were more people in front. I couldn't see a door or anyone that looked big enough to be security. Looking behind me I was shocked to see there was already a half a dozen people joining us with a few more walking towards us.

I looked back forwards when I felt someone nudge my side. Lafayette was laughing at me from a few feet away. Tara huffed when I didn't move and pulled me forward to the already moving line.

"Are we early or are they just working real fast?" I asked taking a couple of steps forward when the line moved again.

"Maybe. Bartender said this place was huge and definitely best to come early cos most people stay til closing time."

"That happen a lot?"

"I ain't never come across a club I'd stay in all night that's for damn sure."

"From the look of a few fine specimens in this line I doubt I'll be here 'til closing," Laf muttered

I laughed as I followed his eye line only to see two men practically preening under Lafayette's gaze.

"What about you?" Laf asked his eyes still on the men.

"The only time I stay somewhere 'til closing is when it's work." I kept the smile on my face but the harsh reality of never getting to be young threatened to topple my good mood.

"What about tonight?" Laf asked his attention on me instead of the men his face suddenly serious.

"I guess we will have to see," was all I said as I stepped forwards again swinging my dress out with my hips.

"You shake that fine thing honey and you won't be here 'til closing and you won't be leaving alone." I slapped at Laf's bicep smiling at his cheek. Shuffling forward again I knew he was only teasing. Sometimes I did wish that I could be like them and just go out and do what I wanted with who I wanted. Well, like Gran would say if wishes were horses beggars would ride.

As we moved forward again I began to feel the music as much as I could hear it. It was more of a pulsing beat than anything lyrical but it already had people moving around. We were close enough now that I could see the door and the two big hulking men that stood by it with a slender man with a clipboard and an earpiece.

The door to the club, if it could be called a door it was so huge, was open wide the music pouring out as people poured in. I watched a barely dressed blond stagger through the door with a couple of equally dressed young brunettes while the man took our money. The blond barrelled into me using me to keep her balance before she pulled herself upright brushing almost her entire body against mine. Muttering an apology she stumbled off following the brunettes who were wandering off leaning heavily into one another.

Lafayette led the way through holding onto the fingers of one of my hands. We walked through an open foyer like space, the lights a little dim. The music was almost unbearable already but my excitement seemed to overpower the strain on my ears. We veered left skirting what looked to be the edge of the dance floor towards where a large number of people were just standing around. I guessed it was the bar and realised I was right when a tray of shots whizzed passed me and up a flight of stairs that pressed against the outer wall.

Getting to the bar was the easy bit. Getting served looked to be damn near impossible. Lafayette pushed me in front of him whispering (although he may have been shouting it at me for all I could tell) to me to use my charms to get us noticed. Leaning on the bar I let my crossed arms give me killer cleavage. With a quick swish of my head my hair came forward over my shoulder and voila I had a bartender.

He seemed disappointed when I turned to Lafayette for his drink order but he definitely perked up when Laf winked at him as he handed over the filled glasses.

The best thing about being in such a crowded space with someone like Lafayette is his size mixed with this aura that he seems to have that makes people move out of the way. All Tara and I had to do was keep up as he sashayed himself towards a high table.

We had initially planned on a couple of drinks before we hit the floor but we all seemed to be in a rush to finish the one we had. I didn't see us getting to a second and there was definitely no chance of a third for a long while.

My hips seemed to have a mind of their own and I was soon bopping away where I stood as I glanced at the people around us. There was a mix in age as much as there was a mix in the clothing. Some were barely covered whilst others hardly had anything on show. There were a few who looked old enough to be my parents and then some who looked like they had missed curfew already. I'd just caught sight of a creepy middle aged guy who'd just stepped out of the shadows when my glass was removed from my hand. Spinning on my heel I laughed as Laf curtsied to me ever so slightly before taking my hand and pulling me behind him to the bouncing crowd of dancers.

It didn't take long for me to find my groove. The music was hypnotic and my body was responding to every pulse and beat with a shimmy or a shake. I might not be able to sing but I could milk every curve of my body to a beat as easily as taking a breath. With Tara on one side and Laf on the other I let myself be free for the first time in as long as I can remember. I could feel my shields slip but the heavy thumping base vibrated up through me silencing the voices of those around me into a barely heard chatter. If my ears could take it I would play music this loud all of the time.

Lafayette found someone after a few songs and sauntered of to bump and grind to his hearts content leaving Tara and I together. We were well into the crowd on the dance floor by now. A few guys sidled up to us but a few twists and we pulled away putting distance between us before cutting loose again. None of this was about a hookup for me though I knew Tara had been watching one or two guys out of the corner of her eye. One of them had already been watching the two of us and I prayed he wasn't interested in me. It was as much for Tara's sake as it was for my own.

I don't do that, I couldn't do that.

The man from outside the club sidled up behind Tara, one of his arms wrapping around her waist to pull her against him. I watched her body tense ready to fight and toss him away but she didn't. Her head tilted back onto his shoulder her eyes looking up at him as their bodies began to move as one.

Staying within arms reach of Tara I picked up the pace as the song morphed and changed into another. Twisting and turning, bumping and grinding I lost myself to the bass of the music pulling inside of me. I slid away from a few would be admirers keeping watch out of the corner of my eye until they disappeared into the crowd.

I was hot, the exertion of dancing and the hundreds of bodies surrounding me making my skin shine with sweat but I didn't care if it was too much. I was having fun. A cold touch ran up my arm and across my back. I stopped dancing looking over my shoulder to find who had touched me but there was no one there.

The song began to change again and there suddenly seemed to be more of everything all at once. The music seemed heavier, my heart was pounding and the press of bodies and voices began to weigh on me. Opening eyes I didn't know I'd closed I expected to see Tara and her new boy toy but they were gone. Turning around the motion making me dizzy I realised I had let myself be separated. There was no Tara and no Lafayette in sight and I was too short to look over everyone.

My body began to feel like it was overheating. The heat around me, the air I was trying to pull into my chest was too hot. My vision wavered, blurring and darkening at the edges before righting itself again as I desperately tried to breathe. I was panting now and not from dancing. Each new breath was fighting to gain what the last one lacked. Pushing through the bodies I searched for a way out, a way to be free of them. Lust, anger, love, fear and hate. It was all the same. Same words different voices over and over again the bass of the music driving the words and images into my head more and more leaving them clawing at the inside of my skull.

I scrambled towards the hazy green light sending myself careening into the night. The first few genuine deep breaths of the night air felt like I was surfacing from under water. The air wasn't really cold but it was cooler than it had been during the day and it was definitely much cooler than it was inside. The door clattered shut behind me, the sound echoing through the empty alley way.

My body was shaking, my breaths stuttering in and out of me as I fought for control. With each breath I could feel the pulsing beat within my chest return to a pounding beat to a harsh thump. The voices that had been screaming at me before were a blurry buzz in my ears. Closing my eyes I took a deep breath and tried to centre myself so I could begin repairing my mental shields.

_HELP_

It was a young woman's voice. The clarity was startling given the white noise still in my head. There was no one around that I could see. Cautiously stepping out away from the building I moved towards two dumpsters my eyes darting this way and that. The red heels, the same as my own, were the first thing I saw. Following the shoes up a pair of legs, up to a black skirt to a one shouldered white top I came to the young, terrified face of a young blond woman. The yellow light above our heads cast eerie shadows on her face and body. She moved slightly barely more than a twitch but the whimpering sound she made was that of a wounded animal.

I searched her body again looking for any sign of injury. I ran each hand down a leg and then up her body. My left hand met wet fabric and on instinct I turned my hand over. The red was unmistakable. The patch of her top that I thought was shadow was blood.

Looking closely I spotted the smear of red where her head was resting against her shoulder. With both of my still shaking hands I lifted her head cradling it with my right as I pulled away the strands of her hair. Blood was oozing out of a wound in her neck that even in the barely there light looked savage. Her skin was torn, shredded almost. It looked like a wild animal had bitten her.

Clamping my hand over the still bleeding wound I began to worry. She made no reaction to what had surely been severely painful. Her eyes were glassy now staring off behind me.

"You're going to be OK," I whispered unsure if whoever attacked her was still around. I wanted to sound confident but I didn't know what to do. I had no phone to call for help and leaving her to find help wasn't a good idea. Sitting here doing nothing was definitely not going to help.

A loud crash from somewhere nearby broke my train of thought but when I peered around the edge of the dumpster I couldn't see anything. The far end of the ally was cast in darkness and the other had more of the yellowed lights.

*-*-*-GODRIC*-*-*-

Over the centuries it has become easy to perfect the act of using my vampire skills within a city without detection. Still sometimes we are caught. Humans are remarkable. For as predictable as they can be they can also be hugely spontaneous. It keeps things interesting in what could become a blasé existence.

Both Eric and myself picked up Russell's trail at the club. The girl it seems was already bleeding when he took off with her. He was taking more risks. Allowing himself to be seen taking the girl from a highly populated, well lit area. The fact he had taken her unsettled me. Whilst I could clearly detail how far he had lost his mind it could also be a trap. A creature as old as Russell would be dangerous for my childe and myself without his madness. With it there was no telling what he was capable of.

The girl's blood was easy to follow. Russell had made no attempt to disguise either of their scents. Either he had stopped caring or he assumed the stench from the refuse would hide it. Given how we were following him through alley after alley I knew he had a destination in mind. Almost every alley led to a road or path to leave the area.

There seemed nothing special about the scent of the girl so I could see no reason as to why he would have taken her with him. Had he been discovered he would have simply taken out them out like he had done before. No, there was something else at work here. I could only hope he wasn't looking to create more feral children, especially not in my area.

Reaching the end of another alley I stopped. Whilst I did not have intimate knowledge of this area I knew there was a club not far from here. The faint hint of music could be heard to my vampire ears. Although it was not known as a vampire friendly location it was owned by one. Me.

Knowing where he was headed was one thing. The area we were headed into was heavy on security cameras with each one leaving no black spots. I should know I was the one who had them installed. Remaining out of sight would be nearly impossible and to avoid getting into a legal dispute over the recordings with the police should anything happen at the club an alternative route was required. Flight was the only answer. It would mean tracking him would become more difficult but not impossible for some as old as us.

My childe had been watching me curiously from the other side of the alley way. Even after so many years apart we still worked in sync with each other the bond only fine tuning us.

I was only a few feet in the air when I felt him join me. In his youth he would have raced passed me, now though he still had his moments he would wait and allow me to lead. It was a nod to my superiority given this is my area but it was also respect well earned over our centuries together. It had been centuries since I had last used a maker's command on him. It had been for both of safety then and whilst I would use it again if needs must I highly doubt it was necessary any longer. As they have become older my progeny have become less impulsive and more calculating of every move they have made. I have never had the desire to control my children in such a way.

Silently landing on the roof of the warehouse adjacent to the club the music was almost deafening to my ears. How humans coped with it for such lengths of time I would never understand. It was a stark reminder of why I rarely came out this way. The club was not to my taste but it made money and took away suspicion of the comings and goings of vampires to my other warehouses.

The girl's scent was away from the entrance and there was no other blood in the air to indicate Russell had come across anyone else.

Moving along the roof top I lept the large distance between this building and the next with ease. Landing silently yet again with Eric at my side I looked down the side alley. The blood was stronger here and so was his smell. The lights were destroyed at the far end leaving the alley in shadow. Even my vampire eyes couldn't see Russell. He was close by most likely laying in wait for us to make our move. He wouldn't be able to get our scent with us down wind from him but his hearing and his eye sight would catch us if he looked. He would have to come out from where he was hiding first however.

There was another in the alley with the girl. The witnesses and friends didn't mention anyone else disappearing with her. Her scent was sweeter, lighter, untainted and un-perfumed. It was a relief after so much foul smelling waste. I could barely see her given how she was partly hidden from me but I could smell the moment her fear heightened.

*-*-*-SOOKIE*-*-*-

"Who did this? Did you see him?" I asked but she didn't answer me. If it wasn't for the blood pouring over my fingers I would have thought she was gone. I lightly tapped her on her cheek but she just lazily blinked as her head slipped sideways without my support resting at an odd angle on her shoulder.

I felt a presence behind me and turning my head I saw a man maybe ten feet away.

"She needs an ambulance. Please, she needs help." I took my eyes from him to look back at her.

The searing pain at my throat had me screaming out. My hands left girl as I was wrenched up off the ground. My hands flew to my throat touching hair and skin where I expected a blade. Digging in my nails I kicked backwards trying to break free screams of frustration as well as pain leaving my mouth. I pulled at the hair twisting it in my hands but it only made the pain in my neck worse.

I felt a small sense of relief when he pulled away fro me.

"You taste even more decadent than you smell my dear."

My stomach rolled as he licked my neck the flesh burning everywhere he touched.

Sensing my only chance to break free I slammed my head back into his. The stab of pain told me I connected with him even if the pain made my eyes blur. I made to run and I managed only a few steps before his hand closed around my wrist tight forcing me to stop. The bones creaked and cracked as he squeezed tighter making my knees buckle in pain. He yanked me towards him making me cry out as my whole body slammed into his. He barely even moved.

His other hand locked around my throat dragging me closer to him. He smelled ghastly, of foul blood and rotten meat. His eyes were feral, blood splattered all around them. His face was twisted up in a grotesque smile, blood dripping from his razor sharp teeth. My blood. Some blood seemed to have streamed down from his nose and I knew that must have been where I had caught him.

His hand tightened around my throat and I was pretty sure this was it, he was about to kill me. The hand not caught in his grasp clawed at the hand around my neck desperately trying to break his hold. I knew it would be of little use but I'd be damned before I stopped trying.

He brought his mouth to my ear the stench intensifying in the tiny gasping breaths I managed to make.

"I do love the ones who fight. So much sweeter."

His head twisted to the side as he bent further and I closed my eyes knowing this was it. It didn't stop me from kicking at him with all the force I could muster in the small space between us.

But then he was gone and I was tumbling to the ground.

*-*-*-GODRIC*-*-*-

From one blink to the next Russell had her revealing himself from his hiding place and we moved. Eric had been bristling for a fight from the moment he arrived and I knew he wouldn't be left wanting.

The girl was fighting back her blond hair already coloured by her blood. Seizing Russell by the throat I crushed his wrist forcing him to release her as I used all my power and strength to toss him away.

He dragged his claw like hands along the ground slowing himself down before he was up again. With an animalistic growl he launched himself back towards me. Already crouched it was easy for me to shift aside my own curled hands slashing at his side as he passed me leaving him scrambling on the filthy ground. Instantly Eric was upon him throwing punches and kicks that Russell was trying to counter. I flipped into the fight blocking the hits aimed at my childe and countering with my own hits and slashes as he continued his attack. Russell turned his attention back to Eric his blocks and hits becoming more vicious. Landing a punch to Russell's unguarded ribs the resounding crack gave Eric an opening which he took full advantage of. The wrenching sound of a dislocated shoulder was followed by a bellow that was swallowed up as I wrapped my hand around his throat.

Eric grasped both of Russell's arms pulling them behind Russell's back drawing a hiss from Russell's blood filled mouth. He stank of blood, old and new though his shirt front was only covered in new. By the smell I could tell some of it was his and it wasn't all from the attacks from Eric and myself. He was already healing, the cuts already fading to pink lines where our nails had cut through his flesh.

(In German)

"Why?"

"Why not? We are the top of the food chain. They are just cattle."

"You betray us all, endanger us all," I hissed knowing just how close to exposure we had come.

"We shouldn't have to hide. We are greater."

"You are mad. All of your years wasted, erased by this insanity," I spat in disgust. "You hunted her. Why?" Until I said the words I didn't realise how true they were.

"The other smelled so sweet but it wasn't her. She, she is the one that smells so good. It is like sunshine on my tongue. You should try her before it is too late." He sounded almost reverent in his description of the girl though his eyes still spoke of a manic fury buried within.

Growling I pulled my phone from my pocket quickly giving the Magister's team our location. One of their teams was housed nearby in one of the warehouses so it would be seconds before they would arrive.

As if sensing his imminent doom Russell began to fight once more. With his age almost three times that of Eric's it was of no surprise that he manage to break an arm free. As he lunged towards me with his whole body I quickly snapped his neck. Whilst it would not kill him it would take a great amount of time to heal all of which would be painful. Releasing him I watched him crumple to the ground in a heap of limbs as the team armed with silver chains landed around us. With a nod to the team leader I stepped away silently walking towards Russell's last victim. Waving away a vampire as he approached her from the other direction I was glad to see him step away without a fight.

There was only one heart beat now and even that was weak. The smell of their blood filled the air making the most intoxicating aroma. It was something I had not experienced in many decades and one I had no urge to ever repeat.

Eric stepped towards the dead girl. The slight twist of his mouth confirmed what I had suspected. Russell had already fed the girl his blood. Pausing in my steps I chose to think. The girl was not at fault for the predicament she had landed herself in. She would not have been able to defend herself if the heavy hints of alcohol were any indication and had most likely not chosen to be turned. If, and it was a resounding if, the turning was successful she would be difficult to control without the maker's command. She would have to be re-turned, a difficult and risky procedure if a willing surrogate could be found. However given Russell's recent failures the chances she would awaken feral were high. The likelihood that she would meet the true death moments after rising was almost a definite.

With a solemn shake of my head I continued on knowing my childe would end the girl once and for all. It would be another one on Russell's slate.

Kneeling beside the one whose heart still beat I was overcome with remorse. This ones life looked set to be snuffed out as well. I should have acted sooner, should have forced Russell out of hiding. If she had stumbled upon us still a little glamour would have sent her on her way in peace. She would have returned to her human life, no harm, no foul.

Her eyes opened and I could see the sparkle of life within them. It was dulling with each drop that left the ragged mess Russell had made.

*-*-*-SOOKIE*-*-*-

My head lolled to the side and there I could see a man no older than myself holding my attacker by the throat whilst another, taller, pinned his arms behind him. They were saying something but I didn't understand the words. It was too hard to concentrate. My mind was too cloudy, my vision blurred around the edges to do much more than watch.

I felt tired, tired in a way I'd never felt before. I was light as though I was floating atop water. Turning my head slowly I looked up at the night's sky. It was star filled and peaceful. I was peaceful. Nothing hurt anymore, not my wrist or my head or my neck. It was all just gone.

I blinked at the dark night sky and saw a young man's face as I opened them. His face showed nothing but his eyes were full of concern and horror.

"It's OK," I found myself saying and I watched as his mouth twitched ever so slightly. "The girl?" I asked remembering there was someone else hurt other than myself. I tried to look in her direction but a cool hand on my cheek made me stop.

"She is being taken care of." His voice was smooth and calm the feel of it in my head like his hand on my face. It was wonderful.

I closed my eyes savouring the sound. It would be something nice to think of instead of my attacker's sick gloat.

*-*-*-GODRIC*-*-*-

She whispered to me and I couldn't help but reach out to her. My palm fit so well against her cheek the warmth of her skin slipping into my bones. I can smell the sunlight on her skin and the sweetness in her blood just as Russell spoke of. I refrained from action simply answering her question. She is truly different from others asking about another when she herself is so gravely injured. I couldn't help the spark in my chest as I witnessed the joy on her face as I spoke.

She liked the sound of my voice. It was something so strange but it made me both light and down hearted. She was going to die. There was no denying it. Even if help had been on hand instantly the chances of her survival were still ultimately slim.

*-*-*-SOOKIE*-*-*-

As his gentle hand left my cheek I became all too aware of how still my body was. Where my heart had been pounding out of my chest before it now felt like the flutter of a butterfly's wings.

I'm dying.

The thought sank heavily within me.

"Yes." I hadn't realised I had said it out loud. He was standing beside me now his face too blurred for me to make it out. He looked so far away.

"I don't want to die." He turned away from me taking a few steps.

He was leaving me. I didn't want him to leave. I didn't want to be alone.

*-*-*-GODRIC*-*-*-

She looked like she hadn't even know the words had left her lips. I barely heard them they were uttered so quietly. It pained me to confirm what she believed was true.

Rising from where I knelt beside her I began to walk away. I had to leave. I could no longer stay and witness another end, her end. My core ached with every foot step away from her, the pull, the urge to stay was almost overwhelming. I could feel my childe's eyes on me. They searched me for a moment before leaving to her still body. She spoke out her words drifting in the night air. Answering her with more honesty than I intended I stopped walking. At her next words had my heart beat it would have surely stopped. I could not look at her as I answered.

*-*-*-SOOKIE*-*-*-

"Please don't leave me." I could barely see him now his dark clothes blending with the shadows.

"I must leave."

"Take me with you." I wasn't sure I spoke the words properly let alone loud enough for him to hear but he seemed to have stopped moving away.

"You do not know what you ask of me. If I were to take you with me there would be no return."

"Please." the word left me on a laboured exhale. Before my next haggard breath could fill my chest his hazy face filled my eyes. I tried to smile glad that he wouldn't leave me but I was too tired now.

*-*-*-GODRIC*-*-*-  
>Returning to her side I knelt back where I had been before. She was fading fast now. I had to make a choice but there seemed to be none. I wasn't sure I wanted another childe. My children had flourished under my teaching but was I prepared to do it again? The small twitch of her lips as she tried to smile paired with the pain at the thought of walking away was all the decision I needed.<p>

Cradling her face with a touch as gentle as I could make it I tilted her giving me access to the undamaged part of her throat. Whilst Russell's actions may have led us to this path I would not allow him to taint it. There was very little blood still left within her but I had to be sure she would rise well and whole. Taking only two mouthfuls I rose looking back to her face. Her eyes were glassy, unfocused. I knew I had to act fast.

Biting into my wrist I let the first few drops land against her tongue before placing my wrist to her mouth. She made no move to do anything. I could see her eyes struggling to focus on me.

*-*-*-SOOKIE*-*-*-

His hands were on my face again tilting me slightly though they didn't feel as cool as they had before. There was a barely there pressure on the uninjured side of my throat but it went as fast as it came.

Shadows were all I could see as my head was moved again. I could make out his eyes but they too were darker than before.

"Drink little one," was all he said. I couldn't take my eyes from him even as I struggled to swallow whatever he was giving me. My eyes became too heavy to keep open but I tried to fight, tried to keep drinking like he had asked of me.

"Sleep," he whispered and I let my eyes close. I tried to swallow again but I couldn't get my throat to work. As a hand began gently moving over my neck I felt like I should be afraid. I knew would be OK. He had me even if I didn't know his name.

*-*-*GODRIC*-*-*-

"I hope you will forgive me little one," I whispered biting into my wrist one last time. My blood was pooling in her mouth now but with a slight massage to her throat it would be swallowed. I watched it disappear as my wrist healed once more.

Brushing her hair back from her face I marvelled at the softness as I took in the surrounding area once more. The Magister's team had gone Russell and what remained of the girl along with them. Only my eldest childe accompanied us now in the dark alley.

"Did she have anything with her?" I asked not taking my eyes from her.

"The bag seems to be hers," Eric replied from where he stood where the dead girl had once lain. She was gone now like the one who laid before me. The difference was this one would rise again. I could hear him rummaging through the small item tossing away the useless items he came across."No phone, some cosmetics, a wallet with a modest amount of money in it. Drivers licence. Sookie Stackhouse, 22. Hmmm."

"What is it?"

"She is from Bon Temps."

"That is in your area is it not?"

"Yes. Small town nothing notable. There is a shifter who runs the local bar but other than that nothing."

"No vampires?"

"None out that way. I doubt they would blend in very well. Too much knowing your neighbours."

"She wouldn't have come across our kind then."

"We must leave. There is little time until dawn and we have to dig."

"I know," I replied. For as much as I knew she would likely hate the new existence I had given her one thing had me reaching for her and rising into the night.

Hope.


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: I want to say a big thankyou to all you wonderful people for reading and reviewing. I want to say thankyou to all the guests who have left reviews. I can't answer them like I do my other reviews but your words are just as valuable.

I want to say a big thankyou to those of you who have put this story into your alerts and your favourites. It is truly overwhelming at times to see the response I have had with this story. This entire thing was just a fragment that I could not get out of my head and even now I have pieces playing at any given time in my mind and usually in the most bizarre places.

My children are currently on their summer holidays from school so the time I get to write is broken up through the day in stolen moments here and there. It has meant that I have managed to get this written faster than I expected and there is honestly more than I expected there to be for this chapter.

As always I own nothing in this what so ever. I am just having a little fun in the TB universe.

* * *

><p>Choosing the area for where my new childe would rise was not as difficult as I imagined it would be. I knew of the many frequented places known to be safe and secure but that I didn't want for her. There is a small wooded area not far from one of my homes by flight. A small lake is there and whilst it is used by humans they tend to stay near the water's edge when not on the water itself. I know there is a small clearing a little ways from the water that will be the perfect place to awaken.<p>

The flight is uneventful for which I am grateful. Too much can go wrong in these delicate times. Laying my newest childe gently on a patch of moss covered grass I move around a rock formation searching for a spot. Standing several feet to the back of the boulders I know that no human will detect the freshly disturbed ground unless they intentionally come out this way. Between Eric and I digging a hole for the two of us will take no time at all. We will remove the top layer of grass and moss to hide the hole more efficiently keeping us safer.

"Were you as indecisive with my turning as you have been with my sisters?" Smiling at him I remember how I had carried him into the trees, the place for which we would remain already dug and ready. I had known it was the correct spot the moment I laid eyes on it.

"I was not indecisive with your sister nor am I now."

"We walked almost the entire estate when it came to Nora's turning and you have flown over several heavily wooded areas that would have easily worked. That isn't counting the cemeteries." Eric was eyeing me now. He turned to look at me straight on, his head quirked as he studied me.

"You already knew where we would lay." It was not a question and I did not take it as one. Choosing not to answer I continued my search.

"Here. We will be protected further from the sun's rays and from prying eyes."

"You will have to remain in the ground longer now than when you turned Nora."

"I am aware."

It took no time at all between the two of us to create a hole big enough for two. Whilst my new child was petite I did not want her to awaken in her new form any more crowded than was necessary. I had monitored her carefully whilst we dug and I had already felt the faint spark of a new bond within myself. It was much more faint than I had remembered it being with Eric and Nora but I knew it would grow. It had to grow.

When the hole was finally at a sufficient depth I lifted her from her grass bed and slowly lowered myself into our grave. I had cleared as many of the tiny rocks as I could leaving just the damp earth for her bed. Laying her down carefully I smoothed down her dress over her legs. Even with the paleness of death she looked beautiful. She still seemed to shine. Laying down beside her I took her hand in mine lacing our fingers together. I had done this with Eric and Nora both. Sometimes I believed it was why we had kept such a strong connection between us all. From the moment I took their blood, as they laid in the earth becoming what they are now, they had me by their side guiding them.

The large quantity of soil that landed upon us both was not surprising. Eric was running low on time unless he wished to join us so the sudden push he gave the giant heap of soil was of no surprise.

He did surprise me when he returned the grass and moss we had lifted to cover the disturbed soil back to the ground. Though I couldn't see him it sounded as though he was dancing on my grave. I couldn't help the laughter that bubbled within me at his antics. I heard his own light chuckle gone as fast as it arrived. Laughter felt so strange yet so liberating.

"I will return at sunset with a human for each of you." I was ready to object when I felt him leave, the bond between us stretching the further he went.

There was still some time for me before the sun rose. At my age it took very little effort to remain awake. Even though it wasn't something I practised often it would take a few hours before my body would succumb to the bleeds. Whilst unpleasant it could be ignored for a little more time. I had on occasion remained awake through the day and into the night but it was rare. Even with the delights of modern technology there was still only so much I could do from the constraints from my suite in the nest.

Closing my eyes I allowed myself to fall into down time before the sun would call me to my day death.

I awoke long before the sun had disappeared over the horizon. Whilst I understood that I would need to remain in the ground until the sun had set completely I had failed to fully comprehend just how little I could do whilst here. Releasing my phone from my pocket I decided to check all of my messages finding one from the Magister informing me of the trial that would be tonight for Russell.

It was in truth a formality that had to be seen to be done. The Authority should have been the one to put him on trial but with the staggering amount of damning evidence and the need for complete closure they had handed it over to the Magister to complete. There was in all honesty only one action for them to take and with the high number of vampire deaths because of Russell I did believe there would be many out for his blood.

Russell was also a liability the longer it took for him to meet the true death. If he was held there was a chance of his escape either using his formidable years or by someone who believed as he did. Russell still had children out in the world. He could call them. As he continued to exist so would the stories of his worldwide travelling. The faster he was taken care of the faster he would descend into myth and legend, a story whispered amongst the newly turned.

The other messages were of little consequence, business both vampire and otherwise that required no action. With that done I laid back and plotted.

My new childe would need a new identity and new clothing. I would have to find something to occupy her time when I needed to attend to Sheriff business perhaps a hobby or such. I would not trust her training to any other from the nest. Only Eric could truly take my place in training her but he would return to his own area soon enough. With his own child awaiting him in Shreveport I would not burden him anymore than necessary.

All of my time would be spent training her, moulding her into her full potential in her new world. It was oddly exhilarating to have such a challenge. I could see her out of the corner of my eye the faint glow that resonates within our skin, the magic that keeps us animated easy to see though it was duller than I expected it to be. The spark was bigger now and I knew once she awoke it would ignite further.

I found myself eagerly anticipating the moment her eyes opened. I would miss it of course. Though I would love to be here I needed her to dig her way out herself. Eric and Nora had both clawed there way out of the dirt with ease and so should she.

This remaining in the dirt until the sun set reminds me of my younger years before even Eric was at my side. It was a difficult time then, the invisible scars left by my own maker still raw. I had struggled so much to come to terms with the beast inside of me. To claim myself back from what he tried to make me be. I had loathed every word that left my maker's mouth. Now, whilst the thought of the things I had done while under his command still weighed on my soul, I knew I was not the one to blame for those years, those decades, those centuries.

For all that it was unpleasant they were simpler times. Even when I had Eric or Nora at my side the times were rarely too complicated. With Eric we could travel many hundreds of miles before coming across another vampire. There were so few of us then, not like now. Stumbling upon the feeding grounds of another vampire could however turn deadly. With limited humans, villages were coveted.

Eric and I spent many centuries travelling, fighting in battles and claiming those left for dead. Never did we stay too long in one place. Nora never experienced the wandering as we had. When she was turned we had left, heading out of the city to a quiet estate. Whilst we never stayed long large cities, even then, afforded us some level of anonymity. Moving on then became needed so as our lack of ageing could go undetected.

Now these modern people come into this life with already over inflated egos. They know nothing of suffering, of true hunger, of a hard days work and fighting for survival. They are softer, entitled. What this new generation of vampires will bring I am not sure but I have already witnessed many who have been turned in the last decade meet the true death either by the hand of an authority or that of their maker.

Whilst I am not sure I know it will not be the case for my little one.

As the sun disappears from the sky a coolness can be felt around me. The heat of the sun is being stolen away. Though I know I can safely rise now I linger. It pains me to leave her side. I can remember my own confused thoughts as I awoke. For some time I believed I had been buried alive, that my master had finally killed me. As I dug myself free I had hope. If he thought me dead then I was free. When I breached the surface and found him there waiting for me to rise I discovered a new world of torment.

I felt Eric awaken. While always aware of him and his sister through our bond it was a welcome change to feel him so close. It was unlikely he felt the same as I regarding my constant awareness of him. He had been monitoring the bond more in the last few years. Given recent events I had a suspected reason but I had not wanted to trouble him when thoughts of my existence came to mind from time to time.

The heat of the last of the sun's rays vanished into the coolness of night. With a last gentle squeeze of her hand I pushed away tormented memories and focused on now. Pushing with my hands and my feet I moved my upper body up. Sitting upright whilst surrounded in earth is not a pleasant experience but shifting my legs to my body allowed the soil to shift filling the void more fully. The above soil was much more loose now. Pushing up slowly I dislodged the moss and grass from above. Floating up I stepped carefully onto the ground beside her.

Moving to the foot of our grave I felt soil fall from me with every small movement. Wearing dark clothing for the hunt meant much of it was hidden but I could feel it across my skin and under my nails.

I was combing my fingers through my hair removing as much as I could when my childe arrived. He had obviously flown some of the way his hair unkempt and fly way even though his usual dark outfit looked no worse for wear. He had two humans with him both from the nest. At my age I needed very little blood and even though I didn't favour any human at the nest, often opting for a bag of acquired donor blood instead, one of the two had a unique flavour that I enjoyed. I believed even now that Isabel had a hand in the fact she seemed to only ever be around every few weeks when I chose to feed. Seeing her here I was sure my son and my second in command had been conspiring against me.

"That is the part I do not miss," my childe said a small twitch to the side of his mouth. "I have brought you a change of clothing and a snack." Accepting the small stack of clothing I was pleased to note they were all in darker tones. They were not my preferred choice but with the events set to transpire this evening we were less likely to be noticed in blacks and greys especially if it became as bloody as it could.

"Good evening Anna," I said calmly. Eric looked astounded the bond filled with curiosity.

"Good evening Godric. How are you this evening?" The slightly dead tone to her voice told me Eric had her under his glamour. I could not blame him. Given where we were it would have taken a long time to march the two of them here. The other one I knew was running out of time. Her mind was on the brink of collapse under the weight of all the glamour she had received. While still young she had been around for years as a pet for one vampire or another. She had been left for the blood pool some time ago, her mind too gone to truly function as required.

"I find myself feeling impatient and yet exhilarated." Her face remained blank. Stepping forward into her space I clasped her chin between my thumb and forefinger. The glamour Eric had used was strong and deep. I would use a little glamour each time I saw her, just enough to cover the act I didn't want her to remember. I usually enjoyed the conversations we had. A block was already in place to stop her from knowing or sharing why she was at the disposal of the seemingly human household.

When Eric had said he was bringing a human for me I had every intention of turning them away, possibly even offering the second human to my new daughter. Remembering how stubborn, foolish and frenzied both Eric and Nora had been upon rising I knew I would need every ounce of strength, both physical and otherwise I could manage. And as much patience as I could muster. With it being several days since I had fed I would need very little to meet my needs. Anything remaining would go to my new childe should she need it. If she were unable to feed from them I would need to offer my own to slate her thirst. Whilst it was not ideal it would be the best scenario in this case. I would also need my strength for the trial. The proceedings could become deadly.

Licking the side of Anna's neck I bit gently but drank deeply. I would have my strength to protect my new childe.

With the flick of my tongue onto my fang I licked the wounds on her neck. I have not liked leaving my marks in a very long time especially not in such an obvious place. Tonight would not be the night that changed purely from my anticipation of what was yet to come. The moment they were gone I sent her on her way.

Using speed only a vampire could see I took off my clothing and replaced them with the new. There was a shower of dirt as each piece was removed. I could still feel some of it against my skin. I would shower once my childe rose and the trial was over with. It would only be a mild irritant, easy to ignore.

Now we wait.

One difference between humans and vampires is when we need to wait we are still. Humans cannot be still. With no need to breathe our bodies remain motionless. In my time watching humans I have seen them pace, mutter and bounce their legs. That does not count the all manner of twitches their bodies make involuntarily as they try to remain still. We do not have any of those problems. Our bodies are ours to control. The only movement between the four of us was the human breathing.

It was a little after eleven when Eric moved. The movement was small just the slight bowing of his head.

"I am sorry," his deep voice whispered. His voice carried the same small speck of regret as the bond.

"There is nothing to be sorry for. She will rise." I knew what I said to be the truth. In my many years as Sheriff and throughout my travels across the world I had learnt that those who did not rise had no bond to speak of with their makers. While many of them felt something akin to grief over the loss of a potential childe that was all there was, no pain of a bond broken or lost. There wasn't one to lose.

I could feel her.

I sent the feel of her through the bond to him allowing him to feel what I feel.

"It is small, weak."

"For now."

"Once she awakens you expect it to become stronger?"

"I know it will," I replied calmly. I knew it to be the truth. Though Eric's words spoke of the small fear that had grown the longer we waited I had yet to fail a childe.

As if queued by our conversation I felt the bond flood to life. She was awake. It was stronger but not quite to what I had hoped. This would be the test. I listened carefully as she began to move, my body primed to help her though I knew I should not.

*-*-*SOOKIE*-*-*-

I opened my eyes to see darkness. It wasn't pure black more dark and grainy. There was a pressure all over my body and for a second I panicked thinking I was being held down. It was the smell that gave me pause. Dirt. Fresh, damp, disturbed soil. I was buried. The panic I'd had at the thought of being held down catapulted. I gasped for air as I tried to wiggle my arms free. The more I moved the more soil fell into my face and the harder it was to breathe. Taking a deep breath I pushed and pulled, mentally rejoicing when the soil moved aside. Inch by inch I pulled the soil away managing to pull my legs up and under me as I created a hole for myself. Holding the breath was easy as I worked, very easy.

Finally my hands broke through the top reaching the cool air above. I pushed my fingers into the soil bringing myself out kicking my legs to break free faster. Turning onto my back I propped myself up on my hands looking back at the hole I came out of. The soil was recently disturbed and not just from digging myself out. The hole was bigger than a it should have been for just myself. It looked like one of the double plots I had seen in the cemetery back home. Overall it looked like a six foot by six foot grave had been dug. Looking down at myself finding the dress I had worn to the club blood stained and torn I wondered why I had been buried in it. Looking to my left all I could see was trees and grass. Wherever I was it wasn't the usual graveyard.

Had my attacker thought I was dead and dug a grave for me so I wasn't found? Was I to be left here unmarked for the rest of eternity? Feeling someone beside me I looked sharply to my right into the most beautiful eyes I had ever seen. I had seen this man before. He had been there after, after my attacker had been pulled away from me. He saved me. I looked back to the hole trying to make sense of everything.  
>"Come. We must leave here." My eyes came back to his and his outstretched hands. Something in me knew I would be safe with him even though I had no idea who he was. There was a pull inside of me like a rope was tied around my heart and he held the other end.<p>

Taking his hand I got my feet under me slowly rising. My eyes never left his. Once I was upright I gripped his hand harder feeling myself off centre, almost tumbling back to the ground. He caught me, this man I barely even remembered caught me with his arm wrapped around my waist. It was much more forward than I was used to. There was a glimmer of amusement in his eyes that made me smile. I could feel it, inside of me. A quick quirk like the twitch of a smile at the side of your mouth before it was gone again.

A noise distracted me from my examination of his eyes. It's steady thump thump was one I knew well but I couldn't understand why I could hear it so well. Placing my hand to my chest I froze in shock. There was no pounding on my chest, there was nothing at all. My face must have displayed my shock as I found my face clasped gently in his hands.

"This is a new beginning."

"I'm dead."

"In a way. Your old life has come to an end and I have given you a new one."

"I moved my hand up from my chest to my throat. Expecting the open gashes and torn flesh, maybe even a swath of bandages, I found only cool, smooth skin. I couldn't fathom how but I could remember the man.

"The man he's?"

"He is currently being held for his crimes."

"You're police?" I was baffled. No officer of the law sounded like him and they definitely didn't look like him.

"I am in a position of authority." I must have had an unusual expression on my face from his vague answer as he stroked my cheeks with his thumbs before speaking again. "He will not harm you again."

Something in his touch and his words warmed me inside. It was soothing and calm.

"Come you must feed before we head to the trial." I panicked worried I was to be punished. As if sensing my mood shift he continued. "Your attacker has done a great deal of damage. He must be held accountable for them." I nodded my understanding breathing an internal sigh of relief. There had been a moment where I believed I would be the one in trouble, for what though I wasn't really sure.

The thump thump thump became louder in my ears as we walked around the edge of the hole I came out of. The sound was almost hypnotic, calling to something deep within me. I felt a pain in my stomach sharp and twisting. It wasn't anything too uncomfortable and definitely not something I was incapable of handling. I was all too aware of what hunger pains felt like.

As the sweet sound filled all of me calling me like a siren sound I felt a large presence beside me. He was tall and handsome, broad and fierce yet it was the tiny red head on his arm that interested me. Godric's hand ghosted over my skin as I moved away slowly hypnotised by her. Something within me snapped. In a blink I had my face nestled in her throat guzzling down the most wonderful nectar I'd ever tasted.

With each mouthful my brain seemed to engage and as the sound of her heart beat slowed more my mind put together what I was doing. Pulling away sharply I let her fall to the ground. Her eyes were glazed staring up at the dark sky as she stayed unmoving. Her chest still rose and fell and like her heart it was slow but even. What had my attention however were the two gaping holes in her neck still slowly leaking blood.

My hand trembled as I lifted it to my mouth. I knew something was different. My mouth felt wrong. When my fingertips connected with the two unusually long sharp teeth I had a harsh flashback to the man who attacked me.

He had bitten me.

He had teeth just like this.

He was a monster and now so was I. What had he done to me?

I looked to the them, one my supposed saviour the other the one who brought thing poor, sweet smelling girl. Shaking my head to clear it of the craving I still felt I blinked once, twice. The tall one smirked and I stumbled back at the sight of his bright white teeth. Fangs. That's what they were, fangs. They were monsters too. With my hand still over my mouth I smothered the noises that were trying to escape before I turned and ran.

Running barefoot when surrounded by trees is not easy but I made it through to a small break in the trees before I dared to look back. There was no sign of them but as I turned back to make my way back to make my way through the trees as best I could they were there. I tried to stop but found myself slipping on the damp grass. Landing hard on my right hip I attempted to crawl away keeping my eyes on them.

"Please," I paused for just a second but my insides were trembling. "Please do not fear me." His face was so blank but his eyes, his eyes spoke to me.

"W...What?"

"You were attacked by a vampire by the name of Russell Edgington. He did significant damage to you. Even with immediate care your chances of survival were slim."

"We don't have time for this," the tall one hissed in his ear but with at the small wave of his hand he walked away.

I could remember being outside and the sudden sharp pain in my neck. I could see the man's eyes, so dark they were almost black as he smiled at me blood all around his mouth.

"When we arrived we subdued him. Normally you would have been left for dead but there was something about you that I did not wish to walk away from. You asked me something, do you remember?" He asked taking a small step towards me.

I thought back trying to put together everything that happened after the attack. I knew I had been on the ground. I could remember the pain disappearing and I could remember him, his face as he leaned over me.

"I asked you to take me with you." The realisation that I had asked for this even if I had not known what I was asking for was extreme. The sudden swell of anger was breath taking. "I didn't know what I was asking for." I felt like I wanted to scream but I bit down on it.

"No and I told you as such." Looking away from him I knew what he said was the truth. He had told me, had practically warned me against what I was asking him. Tears of frustration filled my eyes. I had been such a fool. How could I allow myself to agree to something without knowing what I was agreeing too.

"Though it pains me to do so I will offer you a choice now, here. I can end your life as it would have in the alley as painless as I can or you can discover a new world, live this new life. I'll be your father, your brother, your child. I will teach you everything I have learnt in my two thousand years. The choice is yours."

He began to walk away leaving me frozen to the spot. I skimmed my fingers over my lips as I watched the tall one follow a few steps behind. There really was no choice to make. I didn't want to die. I didn't want to be a monster but he wasn't a monster. I'd seen the good in him as he had knelt beside me. He could have hurt me but he didn't.

There really was no choice. I had lived with my curse I was sure I could learn to live with this new one. Following after him in a pace that was just shy of running I watched out for rocks and twigs as I tried to catch up. They weren't too far ahead but it was far enough for my short legs.

When I was maybe twenty feet away they both suddenly stopped. Wary of the sudden change I slowed my pace, approaching cautiously, keeping a little space between us as I came up on his right side. Though he kept his body facing forward he did turn his head to look at me over his shoulder. The smile on his face was so real, so full of boyish charm I felt myself smile back.


	8. Chapter 8

A:N/ You are all absolutely fabulous. There is no doubt. I don't believe in bribing readers with a no new chapter without reviews and I definitely don't make them a requirement in any way shape or form. I will admit however that the sheer volume of reviews that blew up my email account did motivate me to write more. The onslaught of rain that we have had for the last few days has probably also added to the motivation with my children opting for lazy rainy days filled with colouring and DVDs. I can't argue that curling up on the sofa with my laptop wasn't also a wonderful way to enjoy the rain.

So here we have the next chapter. We will face Russell once more and we will see the next step for Godric and Sookie.

Enjoy.

Disclaimer: I don't own it I just like playing around with it because canon from both SS novels and TB has me seriously disappointed. 

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><p>The trees and grass gave way to concrete. It was a large, well lit parking lot with a lone car parked in it. It was a black generic Mercedes (as generic as a Mercedes can be at least) that I had seen more often than not on the roads since I came here. The tall one, whose name I still didn't know, climbed into the driver's seat. I climbed in through the still open back passenger door. As soon as the door was closed the car was started and we were speeding along the roads.<p>

I looked at my saviour, the passing lights casting light and shadow over him. He was so young, a teenager at a glance, but there was something in the way he held himself that made him look older. Was what he said true? What did that mean for him, for me?

Slowly he blinked turning his head so that he faced me. I smiled when he met my eyes. You could see everything in his eyes, all that he is. The smile he gave me was indulgent, the kind you would receive from a parent and one I received almost daily in the years I was with my Gran.

"I don't even know your name."

"I am Godric and this is Eric." I met his eyes in the rear view mirror. He didn't seem to be too impressed with me. I nodded to him surprised when he did it back. That warmth was there again. It was so odd. It felt like when Gran was proud of me. Bringing my attention back to Godric I asked the other question I needed answered.

"When I was attacked there was a girl."

"Yes there was."

"What happened to her?"

"She was taken care of."

"She's alive?"

"No," I knew that before I asked but I wanted to ask, I needed to ask. I wasn't sure if I wanted to know if she was dead or like me, like us.

"And the one before, the one that I..."

"She has been sent on her way. You did not harm her. Many newborns kill their first meal. They have very little control and very large appetites." Even as he said the words in an even, calm tone it didn't help me. They had expected me to kill her. Dismayed I turned away.

I continued to look out of the window watching the buildings and trees whizz passed. Nothing really registered. I didn't know the city to be able to recognise anything. The only thing I knew were the occasional chain restaurants and stores. Dismayed at not knowing where I was I turned to Godric. He was young, more than a teenager but not quite a man. His short brown hair added to the boyish look. The passing streetlight cast an unflattering mixture of shadow and light upon him. They seemed to contort his face yet not in a way I found fearful.

His clothing was simple a light knit grey sweater teamed with washed out grey jeans. That simple observation baffled me. How could I make out the colours enough to know they were anything beyond dark in the shifting light and dark?

His eyes turned to mine and I looked away, casting my eyes down. I was embarrassed at being caught watching though even now I wanted to look at him again.

With my eyes on my lap I could see the dirt on my clothes. There was a light dusting of dirt across my bare thighs and the bottom hem of my dress was dark with it. I looked like I had been rolling around in the dirt and grass. It wasn't the dirt that bothered me. From the neckline down to my waist was a dark, stiff patch of dried blood. I had apparently bled all over my brand new dress. It was too large for me to hide it well and I doubted Eric was going to be willing to take me to my hotel room so I could change. It looked like I was going to this trial thing looking a mess.

Gran would be appalled. Running my fingers over my lips I guessed she would be appalled at a lot of things that had and were happening.

Letting my hand drift I rubbed the smooth skin of my neck. My fingertips searched for the slightest blemish, the smallest hint of the horrific injury that caused the blood on my dress. There was just nothing.

"We heal very quickly from most flesh wounds. Whilst you slept your body healed all the injuries that had been inflicted, bone and flesh."

I looked at my wrist clenching it into a fist to test how well it had healed but there was no pain. It was remarkable.

"Most?"

"There are instances that can slow the healing." I looked at him waiting for more but he just climbed out of his door.

At some point the car had stopped. Eric had already vacated, the driver door already closed. My door swung open a hand filling the space. I took it sliding from the seat and out of the car. Rising to my full yet unimpressive height I looked around. We were in what could only be a junk yard. Cars of every shape and size were littered around, some stacked upon others in precarious looking piles. There were parts leaning against rusted trucks and shattered glass all over the floor. Two large lights were suspended from a metal tower casting muted light on everything yet everything looked as clear as it would at dusk.

The feeling of fabric wrapped around my shoulders startled me stopping my examination of my surroundings. Looking over my shoulder I found Godric with a leather jacket in his hands. He lifted it a little wordlessly offering it me. With an embarrassed smile I slipped my arms into the sleeves. Godric lifted it onto my shoulders before walking around me quickly zipping the front for me. It was much too big for me, my hands disappearing into the sleeves and there was only a few inches of the bottom of my dress peaking out at the bottom. I must have looked hilarious but I didn't care. The rich scent of the leather combined with the heady smell that was clearly Godric filled up my senses.

I ran my hand over the leather sleeves. As expected there was little temperature to it but the cool touch of it was nice. It was smooth and well worn but I could feel the texture as though it was brand new. The feel of it was almost fascinating.

My hand was placed on his elbow so softly I would have barely noticed if it hadn't brought us so close together. Together we walked weaving our way deeper into the junk yard. I watched where I was putting my feet though for the first time I realised I still had the ridiculously high heels still on my feet. I had barely even noticed them up to now. I had been constantly conscious of every foot step at the club.

We walked until we came across a gathering. One by one they turned stepping aside to let us pass but I could feel their eyes lingering on us even as we moved further away. Whether they were on me or my companion I didn't know but I could feel my skin shift under their greedy eyes.

"You are late Sheriff," came a crowing voice. I followed the sound up a stack to a wiry man with beady black eyes. We were stood to the left him causing him to tilt his head in order to see us though he didn't look directly to us. I was glad I didn't get the full weight of his stare. It was unnerving as it was.

"I was waiting for my childe to rise," was all Godric said his voice clearly showing no sign of an apology. I was sure he meant me and when with the way the wiry one raked his eyes over me I was definitely sure. Being called a child bristled something within me but I pushed it down. The wiry one seemed too interested in me as it was. Something glinted in his eyes before he looked away from me. That fraction of a second made his face change ever so slightly but I couldn't get a read on what it was.

With a nod from a man stood near us the wiry man's attention was drawn away as was everyone else's.

It was the snarls that drew my attention first. It sounded like a wild animal fighting to be freed from a trap. I couldn't make out where the sound was coming from at first. It sounded close almost like whatever was making it was almost upon me. It seemed to be coming from behind a tall dark man dressed entirely in black but he was much too far away. I couldn't understand. The man was tall and broad, his face made paler by the dark clothing and in his hand he had a thick chain held tightly in his fist.

As they drew closer, close enough for me to see there were two of them with something in between them, I caught the smell of something burning. The acrid burning smell grew stronger the closer the came. Covering my face with my free hand I looked around and saw I wasn't the only one affected. A few had covered their noses though the majority didn't, Godric included. I couldn't understand how he could stand the smell.

The first one turned with military precision walking across to the other side of the crowd. That was when I saw him, my attacker. Crazy eyed, snarling with his lips curled up and gnashing his teeth in every direction, he was bound in thick chains around his waist and torso, his arms pinned to his sides up to the elbow. His legs were bound in chain linked manacles like they used in jails though the cuffs were thicker than I thought they ever used.

Around his neck was a thick collar with a chain leading from the front and back. Wisps of smoke twirled up away from his skin each time he moved. He was covered in blood, trails of it coming from his ears and eyes but the rest was clearly from when I was attacked. His shirt looked a lot like the front of my dress and I could see splashes of it on what was left of his pants.

The two men were struggling with him as he pulled and kicked trying to pull the chains free. It looked brutal and I couldn't help but wonder as I watched one of the men tug the chain once again to rein him in why there were only two of them holding him. There were others around dressed in all black just as they were. Why weren't they there keeping him under control?

He thrashed harder once he saw the man at the top of the stack, the one Godric called the Magister. He bolted forward hissing and spitting but there was no slack on the chain. The collar cut into his throat as the two men were jolted forward and I watched, sickened, as he moved back and a chunk of his flesh remained on the metal.

The others pulled him back until he was stood between them. He still fought struggling and twisting as though he was trying to wriggle free of the tightly bound chains. Suddenly he stopped and sniffed the air like a dog, a look of bliss wiping away the animalistic snarl from his face. His head twisted in my direction, his face splitting into sick smile. Sniffing again a manic laugh escaped his fangy smile. The crowd seemed to still as he laughed on and on watching him carefully. His laughter stopped when the chain was tugged the laugh disappearing into a growl.

As his guards stopped walking flanking him on both side, his eyes stayed on me studying every inch of my face. I could feel his eyes as though his hands were still on my skin. It felt like it wanted to rip itself off my body and crawl away with each flick of his eyes. Every now and then his eyes would meet mine as though he was searching for something before moving on. Although the fear was bubbling within me I refused to let it show. I'd had a lifetime of masking my response and I was going to use every last drop of it to show nothing on the outside. I may have had no clue about what was going on but this, this I knew.

"Mr Edgington, you have been very naughty," I didn't expect the man to have so loud a voice within his thin frame. Thankfully eyes were on him and Russell and not me so no one saw my flinch. Godric did pull me closer to his side so I guessed he had felt it.

"You have killed, left behind feral newborns who have threatened our existence and destroyed several nests resulting in the deaths of thirty two vampires." I was shocked by how much death he had caused. Part of me wanted to speak up about the girl that he had killed but if the Magister didn't say anything I could only guess they would come up later. I didn't want to imagine how many humans he had killed.

"I am vampire and I am older than you Magister. I am older than all of you," he spat his fangs still on display. "We are strong and they are weak. They are cattle and we, we are the top of the food chain." He truly looked as though he believed this. I was offended at being practically called a cow but my head told me I wasn't really a human any more.

"Whilst that may be true we can no longer exist as we did in days of old. These are not like the days of your turning. Rules are there for a reason. Break the law and you will be punished whether you are three thousand years old or just a day." I saw him glance my way as he finished and I almost gulped. I hadn't done anything wrong, I hoped. Given the way he was trussed up I definitely didn't want to do anything wrong.

"He cannot be punished for living the way his maker taught him," came a voice from within the crowd. Edgington moved zipping to where the voice had come from on the other side of the crowd. The speed he moved startled a gasp from me. He almost reached the front line when his chains pulled him back. He fell to his back hissing and spitting as he was pulled back by the men in black. I was rooted to the spot as they reeled him in like a fish on a line.

"That is not even his full speed and strength," was whispered in my ear. I barely recognised the voice but turning my head I could see Eric out of the corner of my eye. I looked back at Mr Edgington again a tremor of fear in my stomach. I was closer to him than the front line on the other side. If he chose to come after me would he reach me and hurt me again before they could hold him back?

Once Edgington was back between the men kneeling now with a booted foot resting on each of his calves I felt some of my fear melt away but not all of it. Godric hissed something under his breath the words sounding more like a exhalation of breath than anything else but I could pick out that he wasn't happy about something.

"Mr Edgington no longer has a maker and even if your maker were still live at your age you would be held solely responsible for your actions. As vampire we adapt, we learn and we survive. Russell Edgington for your crimes against your own kind you are sentenced to the true death. You will be bound in silver and will meet the rising sun."

A bellow rises from the silent crowd. A dark haired man charges forward but is quickly caught by two more black clad men. Their grip is unwavering even as he thrashed around. He looks pained and desperate. When the Magister's fingers twitch they walk away dragging him with them. His cold, snaky eyes came to me the look in them dark and dangerous sending a chill across my nerve ends. Thankfully his eyes turn away not leaving Edgington's face until he is carried too far away. Even though I can't see him I can still hear him calling out to be freed, for Edgington to be freed.

With the screaming man out of sight but not out of ear I can hear Edgington hissing like a snake. He was looking at a simple wooden box at the Magister's feet. I hadn't seen it before and I wasn't sure when it came in but given his reaction I had to wonder what was inside. I was much too far away and much too short to be able to see inside.

"Return to your monarchs. Inform them of my ruling." In a blink much of the crowd disappeared as fast a Mr Edgington had. Some lingered obviously wanting to see what else would happen.

"I will be free of this injustice and when I am you will all suffer. I will torture your children, tear them to pieces in front of your eyes. You will beg for the true death." he hollered his face looking more crazed as he went on and on. His body was twisting and contorting around the hands and chains that held him. There were more now, five pairs of hands where there had been two before and I had to wonder just what they expected him to do.

Another guard opened the mysterious box the lid lifting off and sliding behind. He pulled out another length of silver chain. It looked thick and heavy yet he carried the bundle with ease. Under the watchful gaze of the Magister Edgington's legs were forced out from under him with two kicks and kept together. The chain was wrapped over and over from his ankle up. The chain ended as it was wrapped around his hips. Another length was carried out wrapping around his middle before the manacle covered ends were snapped over his wrists.

Edgington looked almost feral now, hissing and spitting, shrieking like banshee as his head thrashed around. I could see and smell his skin blistering and burning before pulling away each time he made contact with the metal. It was utterly horrifying but I couldn't look away.

I had grown accustomed to the burning smell but with each new layer the smell grew worse. I had no clue if I could vomit anymore but my stomach apparently was interested in at least contemplating it.

As the men lifted Edgington up, his body still thrashing around I felt Godric lay his hand on my arm where it still remained wrapped around his.

"Come we will return to the nest. There is much for us to discuss." I nodded before allowing him to lead me away. After a few steps I turned and watched the men laying Edgington into the box. The howl that came from him made me jump inside and out my head snapping back around.

Eric was already in the driver's seat when we reached the car. Godric helped me into my side like a true gentleman before heading to his own. The moment his door closed Eric sped off. I was beginning to think he liked to speed.

"You have seen a lot for your first night. Is there anything you wish to ask?" I felt that was an understatement and I had no clue where to start.

"What was on the chain? I've never seen anyone react like that before."

"It is not so much what was on the chain as the chain itself. As vampires we are highly susceptible to certain things. Daylight will harm us and we will meet the true death if we do not find shelter from it, silver as you just saw burns our skin and saps our strength. A wooden stake to the heart or decapitation will also result in the true death as would exsanguination. " That did make me gulp. That was why I came to be a vampire.

"Why true death? And why were they putting Mr Edgington into that box?"

"True death is the ultimate destruction of a being. For vampires we have already died once to be what we are. Some call what we do in the day a day death. The box they were putting Russell into was a silver lined coffin. It will hold him until the sun rises."

"Will he be alone?" For as awful as the things he had done were I didn't really want him to die alone. In truth I wasn't sure I actually wanted him to die but something in me was not happy but satisfied that he wouldn't be able to hurt anyone else the way he had hurt me.

"No. A vampire will stay until just before the sun rises."

"Why was he so interested in me? The Magister I mean. He got this strange look on his face when you mentioned me."

"There are very few vampires as old as myself and I am not known for turning many humans. You are my third childe. I turned Nora almost 600 years ago and Eric over a thousand. You will be a point of interest to most once it becomes known that you are my childe. I hold the blood as sacred Miss Stackhouse. Do you understand?" I nodded though I didn't fully understand. I could see that he wasn't choosing people willy nilly to become his children and a part of me was honoured that he chose me. I guess he lived by the less is more theory or maybe quality over quantity. That sounded better. That he thought those he had chosen were worthy of a part of himself was quite moving.

"Was he really three thousand years old? He didn't look it."

"Perhaps more, perhaps less. At the time of his turning there would have been little cause for tracking dates and time once outside of a family or village. It can be easily lost in the early years when we are at the whim of our makers. Time can become meaningless to us. We will not age, we will not die naturally. We will go on until the end of time." He stared off out of the window as he finished a strange melancholy taking over his voice. I couldn't imagine how he must feel being permanently stuck as a teenager. I wasn't long out of my teenage years and they were not something I would want to be stuck in forever.

"So the myths are true. I will look like this forever?" He turned back towards me a small smile on his face as he looked at me.

"Yes, you will remain the same as will I and so will Eric." I looked to Eric in the mirror again. He was handsome and had his age as a good factor for him. He was masculine enough to have been changed well passed his teens but not quite aged enough to begin to look older. He was the perfect balance. He looked old enough to have finished college and have a few years of life under his belt. It was a look that was a permanent pass for anything in life he could want.

"What about the others? The holy water and crosses and such?" I saw Eric's face split into a smirk and when I looked at Godric he too was smiling again.

"Merely fabrications I am afraid. The one that speaks of no reflection was invented to protect us. If everyone believed that a vampire had no reflection those who were accused could easily be placed in front of a mirror or pane of glass thus saving their lives. Holy water and crosses alike have no affect on us." I could understand that though I didn't like the act of deception. I would rather it be deception than death however.

"Garlic?"

"Although the smell may turn a vampire off as it would a human it has no harmful affects," Eric said from the front seat. I guess that one was true for humans and vampires a like.

"Any more?" Though I could see they were entertained by me I didn't want to push my luck.

"Oh my I guess I have been giving you an interrogation. I'm sorry. You can ask me anything you like? You don't really know anything about me."

"On the contrary. Sookie Stackhouse, Bon Temps resident, Librarian, shelf stacker, waitress in a shifter's bar. Granddaughter to Adele Stackhouse and Earl Stackhouse now deceased, parents Corbett and Michelle killed in a car accident along with your brother Jason, Aunt Lynda Delahoussaye deceased cancer, cousin Hadley Delahoussaye where abouts unknown. You live in your ancestral home currently owing five thousand in property taxes, almost four thousand in medical bills for one Adele Stackhouse. Childhood friends with Tara Thornton and one Lafayette Reynolds both of whom came with you on your first ever vacation.

"You have worked since the age of ten and currently work seven days a week, most days working two jobs. Residents of Bon Temps refer to you as Crazy Sookie though everyone seems to have a different opinion as to why."

Every word cut into me. They knew who I was, they knew everything about me. Had they been following me? Was this all a set up? Did they send Russell my way on purpose? I was spiralling. I could feel it. The ground was giving way under me trying to swallow me whole.

"Little one, look at me." His hand cupped my cheek again turning my head so I faced him once again. I didn't want to look in his eyes afraid of what I would see but his words out in the trees repeated in my head, Do not fear me.

"I only learnt your name when we looked at your driver's licence before we went into the ground. It appears Eric took matters into his own hands. As I am Sheriff of this area Eric is the Sheriff of an area, one that includes your home town. With modern day conveniences it would take little effort to discover information on anyone. The added use of glamour fills in the blanks."

"Glamour?"

"It is a form of hypnosis. It allows us to control humans and the two natured to some extent. I will tell you more but it would be best if we go inside."

I had been so engrossed to listening to Godric I hadn't felt the car stop, again. I opened my own door this time climbing out slowly. I closed the door gently trying to take in the large sprawling home that sat before me. It sat back from the road, lush green gardens leading up to large bushes that surrounded the large white home. The two story home was dominated by glass along one side. Through them I could see several people moving around.

"This is your home?"

"This is one of them. It is not safe to stay in one place for too long though I use this one for my Sheriff duties. Come." I followed him up the steps to the front door. It was already open when we arrived but I could see it really was huge. The size of it would be more suited to a castle than a house.

I tried to look around whilst keeping up with Godric. The entry way split two ways, one that I vaguely made out to be a kitchen and the other a huge sitting area. This was the way Godric was heading. Like at the junk yard everyone's eyes seemed to be on us the moment we walked through the door. It unsettled me again but Godric seemed to pay it no mind.

"Sheriff how was the trial?" A tall slender woman asked from where she was perched on a white sofa. There was a human beside her his heart a little slower than it should be. I quick glance at his collar answered that. She like everyone else in the room was beautiful, beyond beautiful a faint glow making them look ethereal. With all of them dressed impeccably I became all too aware of how I looked.

"It ended the only way it could. Russell Edgington will meet the sun for his crimes. I will call his majesty and inform him of the outcome though I believe he will already be aware." He said nothing more as he turned and walked away. I followed with as much grace as I could trying my best not to garner any more attention.

I followed Godric through a doorway and found myself in what could only be his office.

"Would you close the door for me Sookie?" I smiled again but at his look of concern I figured it was a little too crazy Sookie. Godric hadn't had much of a chance to meet crazy Sookie. Gently closing the door and shutting out the gaze if not the voices of what felt like every vampire out there I stepped away further into the room. Godric was already on the phone sitting behind a large glass desk. It didn't really suit him all that well. The desk was uncluttered only a pair of candles and small lamp residing there. A deep pile rug covered the floor and it looked so soft I wanted to take off these heels and scrunch my toes in it.

Tuning out what Godric was saying I looked at the little knick knacks he had sitting on a small table. Some looked inconsequential but others like a small rock barely bigger than my palm seemed to have some sort of meaning.

As it seemed like the conversation would be going on for some time I took a seat in one of the two chairs he had. I went for the one the furthest away from the door hoping it would dim the voices from the other room. It also meant I was able to see Godric and occasionally look out the window to the green garden. It was different to Gran's garden a little more height to some of the plants but it was still lovely.

I tried to ignore the conversation from the other room but it was difficult. Many were questioning who I was and where I had com from. They were talking about the clothing I had arrived in and the fact that Godric had clearly taken me to the trial. It was like being at home.

It took some time but Godric finally managed to finish his call.

"You have chosen well." I didn't know what he meant. "You sat at the perfect vantage point to see everything in the room." He paused looking me over as he rose from his seat. "That wasn't why you chose it though was it." I shook my head no as he came around his desk. He knelt beside me before speaking again.

"Why did you choose this seat?" I looked to the door before casting my eyes down. "This room is soundproof little one they cannot hear you."

I was confused by what he said. If the room was soundproofed how was it I could still hear them talking in the other room.

"Godric, I can still hear them in the other room."

*-*-*-GODRIC*-*-*-

I was frozen. I couldn't believe she could still hear them. I could make them out, my age adding to my already sensitive hearing but for someone so young to be so sensitive it was unheard of.

"What can you hear?"

"I can hear the lady who spoke to you. She's saying that she knew you had a new childe but didn't know you would be bringing them here so soon. Another is saying he can smell Russell on me as well as you and Eric. Now I can hear Eric telling them they are worse than a bunch of teenage girls with all their gossiping." Had I not had thousands of years of practice I was sure I would have had every thought in my head displayed across my face. She truly could hear everything they were saying.

I thought to call to Eric but I did not. In telling him of her apparent gift I could be putting her in danger. Eric would be loyal to her because of me and he was one of the most honourable vampires I had ever come across. I could think of no one else who I could entrust her safety to until she was able to fully defend herself but until I knew the extent of her gift I knew I should speak of it to no one.

"You can hear them too can't you." Her eyes were dancing between mine, searching and reading.

"Yes I can. My age has heightened my already sensitive hearing further."

"That must be difficult for you." The way she spoke it was as though she could relate but she had only had this gift a few hours. Her eyes though they told me that this was something from her human life.

"It has been gradual so I have grown accustomed to it. There are times however where it has been a hindrance rather than a gift." The look in her eyes told me she understood. She truly was intriguing.

"So the vampires out there can't hear us?"

"No they cannot. As long as the door remains closed this room remains soundproof."

"So this isn't common then?"

"It is out of the ordinary for someone so young to have such sensitive hearing but then every vampire has it's own talents. They can come from the maker or they can be a heightened version of something they had as a human."

"Like what?"

"Exceptional strength, a strong glamour. I have the ability to fly as do a few others that know of." Her face was suddenly filled with a childlike excitement her body practically vibrating in her seat.

"You can fly?"

Rising to my feet I lifted off the floor just enough so that my head was almost touching the ceiling. Sookie squealed as she lept from the chair covering her mouth as she watched me giggling with such honest wonder. I could see it on her face, in her eyes and faintly through the bond. As I slowly sank back to the floor she practically bounced over to me her hands reaching out to touch me but pulling back at the last second.

"Have you always been able to do that?"

"I am not sure. It was not until a few years after my turning that I began to discover more about my new self and it took many more after that before I was able to hone and utilise them."

"Do you think I'll be able to do that?"

"Only time will tell. Come. I will show you where we will rest. You will get the chance to clean up. Offering her my arm again I walked us out moving us swiftly but calmly through the living areas. Most of the vampires in the nest stopped to look at us or should I say look at her. She was beautiful and shined brightly though differently to any other vampire I had ever seen.

I had felt how anxious she was the first time we passed through and I had every intention of staving off that emotion as much as possible though I knew I should not. The faster she came to terms with her new existence the better. A part of me however couldn't bear to take the tough role with her like I had with Eric and Nora. What had she done to me?


	9. Chapter 9

A/N: So I'm not sure if I have mentioned this before in an author's note but when I write it usually starts in my notebook. I write everything as it flows out of my brain straight down in pen. There are huge scribbles and wavy lines through paragraphs when I've put myself in a corner or when I just plain don't like how it sounds or where it is going. The notebook I've been writing WAHOS in has G2G written from the back heading towards the front, a story called sanctuary that is from the POV of Sookie and Eric from the front heading to back and in the middle there is WAHOS.

As of this chapter I have filled the whole darn thing.

This is quite amazing to me because I have about ten stories all around a page of two long (and one epically huge story about a captive Sookie) that are scattered around on sheets of paper or on the back of receipts that have never gone anywhere. There is even the original outline for G2G in this notebook (it was originally very different).

This chapter took a little longer to post firstly because I wrote part of it and then my husband started working 18 hour days on a project so it had to be put aside for a little bit and secondly because when I then got the time to write I wrote it and then had the next chapter there in my head so I carried on writing. It was only when I could really do with the getting the next chapter up that I stopped (though I have to edit as ideas come to me whilst typing this up I did stop and scribble them down).

Now I am writing on loose leaves of paper and stapling them into the notebook just so I lose nothing.

I'm still not 100% on the feel of this chapter. I'm not sure if it is because I wrote it and read it so much that it seems clinical to me but if I spend any more time on it I will get frustrated and scrap the chapter and it is not one that I want to scrap. It kind of paves the way.

Any who I hope (pray) you enjoy.

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><p>I stood in the bathroom staring at my reflection. My chat or rather chats with Godric had been enlightening so far. I still felt there were a million other things that I needed to ask but what they were, I didn't know.<p>

My reflection looked different yet still the same. Now the blood, mud and makeup had been washed down the drain I could see a slight glow to my skin. It wasn't as bright as Godric's. I could only assume it was an age thing. The colour seemed different though, warmer almost. Perhaps I could ask him about that.

The blue of my eyes looked brighter and the whites were actually white not their usual grey and bloodshot. Though my skin still held a few marks and scars it did otherwise look flawless. It felt different too though he had explained that would also be from my heighten senses. I still didn't think I was beautiful, pretty yes and attractive in that blond hair, blue eyed way. I still felt short and I could have used a little more tan but then I guess that would fade anyhow now I couldn't go out into the sun.

Though the bathroom was without a window the little spotlights in the ceiling did well to mimic sun light. Isabel had apparently picked them out for every room in the house. Her reasoning had been they looked better but I guess when you can't have something you want it more. They did help especially in here with the huge mirror dominating the wall. The room wasn't small by any means with it's huge tub dominating the longest wall with the two giant shower heads above it. With the cream stone like tiles and the soft, muted jewel colours in the mosaic border the room looked bright yet soothing, expensive yet homely.

It was a Jack and Jill bathroom, why I didn't know. The other room was joined with Godric's by a doorway any way and it was more of a sitting room than a bedroom. I could only guess it hadn't always been that way although who would have needed the other room was beyond me.

Slipping on the shirt Godric had given me I buttoned it up quickly, much quicker than I usually could, smirking at my reflection when I realised just how short it actually was. Thank goodness he had given me a pair of bottoms too or I wouldn't be leaving the bathroom.

I feel different though I couldn't put my finger on why. Braiding my hair I continued to stare at my reflection hoping to see something that would give me a clue. It was when I tossed the towel into the hamper and pulled on the bottoms that it dawned on me. I couldn't hear anything. Tying the drawstring into a knot almost on autopilot I stared into my eyes in the mirror. Leaning in closer I tried to push my mind out like I had a thousand times before but there was nothing there. There was nothing to even push out. I would have jumped around like a fangirl if it wasn't for all the other changes in my life. I had wanted it gone for so long, ached to just be normal, to be like everyone else in town. It seemed I had traded in one thing for a thousand others.

Exiting the bathroom I looked around the room. We had spent most of our conversation in the other room in front of the fake fire. Directly in front of me was the biggest bed I had ever seen in my life. There were four regular sized pillows laid across the top side by side and there was still a few inches spare at the end. When I had glanced at it when we walked in Godric had said it was needed but why he never said even though I had asked. He'd looked almost uncomfortable for a second before he continued on into the other room.

The room was run on the same colour scheme as the bathroom, soft creams and muted colours with the same dark hardwood flooring. The only difference here was the large cream rug that sat under the bed.

There wasn't much else in here. A mirror stood against one wall beside the door into the other room and on the opposite wall beside the bed there was a door. I could see the clothing inside from here, each piece organised by colour.

Godric was stood beside one of the two large windows that overlooked the back yard. There was a set of doors there too leading out onto the terrace. It ran the length of this room and the other and though narrow there was enough room to sit. I had looked at it wistfully from the other room. It would have been a great place to lay undisturbed to catch some sun. Godric looked lost in a world of thoughts and though I loathed to interrupt that I needed to ask him something.

"When can I go to the hotel for my things? It's not that I'm not grateful for the loan, I am, very much so, but it would be real good to get into something of mine, you know?" I was rambling a little but I was nervous. It only got worse as he looked away from the window.

"I thought you understood there is no going back Sookie."

"But my things," I gestured blindly behind me towards the door.

"Are easily replaced." I bristled at that. I knew they were only clothes but they were mine. I had worked hard to buy each and every one of them.

"Lafayette and Tara?" I could feel myself praying nothing had happened to them. How could I have spent all this time awake and not thought of them? Oh yes I was watching a man be sentenced to death and everything I thought I knew about the world get turned on it's head.

"They are searching for you, as are the police. They will find nothing. They will go home soon enough." His words were soft and gentle like always but they couldn't disguise how awful each of them was. They cut into me as harshly as if he had shouted them. A realisation of where this was headed cut into my heart like a knife.

"I'm never going to see my Gran again, am I? I'm never going home?" I didn't need him to say anything but when he whispered no I lost it.

My legs collapsed from under me leaving me a crumpled, slumped, heaped wreck on the floor. The thought of not seeing Gran again hurt so much. It was heart breaking and soul searing. I needed her. She needed me. How was she going to cope? How would she pay the bills without me there earning? She would lose everything and it was all because I wanted to go away, all because I had to be selfish.

"You've told her she cannot go home then." I didn't hear him come in but something in the way Eric spoke jarred me.

"Yes," Godric said and he almost sounded in pain but I couldn't believe it.

"It is for the best." I went from sorrow to anger in the blink of an eye. Up on my feet in a flash I started towards Eric my hands already flying, punctuating words I hadn't even said yet.

"For the best! My Gran lost everyone but me. She gave up her retirement to raise me so I wouldn't go into care and I've worked my ass off to keep us together in that house and now she is going to lose everything. The house, me! Her health is going to fail because I'm not there to pay for her medication. For the best! She's the only family I've got left and you're telling me I've got to let her die!" Every sentence was punctuated with a hit to his chest. They hurt like hell, his chest like granite against my hand but it felt good to hit something.

"She's human. She would die eventually." He could have struck me and it would have hurt less. I stumbled away shocked at how callous he was. I knew it was the truth. Just like everyone else, it was just something I didn't think about. Why would I think about it when I had already lost so much? "Do not tell me you are foolish enough to not realise something so significant about human life. It ends." My chest was heaving as I stared up at him. Whether it was in anger or pain I wasn't sure but the familiar motion felt good even if I didn't truly need it.

"What do you believe would have happened had I not chosen to turn you?" The tension and anger that had lit up the air between Eric and I disappeared. I knew what Godric meant. If he hadn't turned me I would have died right there in that alley. Right now I would be where ever that girl went. I'd be missing as far as the police were concerned. My friends would search for me and then go home at a loss. Gran would be devastated just like she must be now. She would still struggle, she would still lose everything. My panting stopped almost instantly. I had to hold a breath in my chest. If I didn't the sobs would escape and I would be done for.

"This is not your fault," Godric whispered, his words soft. Though I hadn't said the words out loud he seemed to know what I needed to hear even if I didn't believe him. It was my fault. I'm the one who came here. I'm the one who separated from my friends. I'm the one who went outside alone. I'm the one who smelled so good Russell Edgington attacked me. I'm the one responsible for Gran losing everything.

Eric stepped away heading towards the door where he leaned against the wall. I watched him move out of the corner of my eye though my main focus was on the nothing in front of me. I wanted to close my eyes, to not see where I was but I could feel the tears already welling. If I closed my eyes the tears would fall. I didn't want them to, not in front of him, not after what he had said.

Godric said something to Eric, the words old even though they rolled off his tongue as though he had always spoken them. Through my tears I saw Eric stiffen before he disappeared in a blur, the door closing softly behind him.

I still held my breath but my body was beginning to jolt as I held in the sobs. They were trying to escape, the jerking becoming harder to stop the more they went on. I desperately held on trying to keep the grief from growing. It was like a fist inside of me growing bigger, gripping my insides tighter and tighter. I doubled over as the pain grew and I felt two arms come around me, that spark of warmth telling me it was Godric.

"Let it go Sookie," and it all flooded through me like a dam breaking.

*-*-*-GODRIC*-*-*-

I had known this would happen though I had not expected it so soon. Nora had lasted several years before she too had experienced a bout of grief such as this. She had hidden it at first but it was impossible to hide anything from me for long. When she too descended into grief for her human life and her human family every lesson I had taught her of shielding and hiding all emotion had fallen away. Perhaps if I had allowed her to feel she would not have become so erratic in the months following the episode.

Whilst feeling even just a shred of my new childe's grief and pain it felt as though it could be for something good. She could learn from this. What concerned me was how little I was feeling. It was there and I could feel it, more so with our bodily contact, but it was not as intense as it should be. With her in the depths of such despair with only my own strength keeping her standing, I should feel the need to compartmentalise our bond with that of my other progeny and with the feelings of my own. There was no need. Although I truly felt sorrow for my childe it was not muddied by her own feelings. I could clearly feel the tempered anger from Eric from his assignment and the familiar stretched curiosity from Nora.

Her tears dripped to the wooden floor from where she was bent over my arm. Were it not for me she would have surely crumpled to the floor again. I knew with every tear she lost her hunger would grow. She was battling her sobs now trying to rein herself in, to push down the emotions. She was pushing and pulling everything inside of her. After a few minutes she rose unsteadily from where she was bent over, her movements stilted as she tried to calm herself.

She was still in the circle of my arms, her left hand still fisted in my shirt at my shoulder whilst the other laid over my heart. There was an urge inside of her to curl into me, to take comfort in me but she was fighting it just as she was fighting everything inside of her, her hunger included.

"You must feed," she shook her head no as I knew she would. The thought of hurting someone was clearly on her mind, the surge of guilt through the bond telling more than she was.

Had I been a human of this time I suspect I would have sighed. I knew I would need to do this. I had at times fed Eric this way, though those times were when food was scarce and his hunger was too great to tame. Lifting the sleeve of my sweater I presented her with my bare wrist.

"Bite," I said as calmly as possible. Her hunger was growing and it was beginning to affect me.

"No," and with that one word she broke away from me. "I won't hurt you." The reason behind her reluctance was surprising. I knew there was a sort of affection typical of childe and maker. I hadn't anticipated the glimmer of fear she felt at the thought of biting me. It seemed her actions upon rising had affected her more than I realised.

"It will not harm me. I fed much more than I needed in case I needed to feed you. I need very little." I would not tell her that should she take more than I anticipated I would simply feed again.

Her hunger was worse now but she was holding it back. It was clear that this was not the first time she had felt hunger like this. I could only equate a newborn's hunger with that of days without sufficient food as a human. Why she would have experience of this in this day and age was something I would need to look into. It would inevitably be good for her. It would improve her strength.

I brought my other arm from around her causing her to take another step back. With the thumb on my right hand I pushed into the flesh of my left wrist. The faint snick of her fangs drew my attention. I had seen them before but they were still as beautiful as she was. The desire was there inside her, the scent of my blood reaching my nose as I knew it would hers but she was still holding back. Her eyes met mine once more though it seemed to take a lot of effort for them to leave the small rivulet of blood on my wrist. The cut had healed now but the blood stayed. I could still use it to sway her.

"Bite," and I sent a little pressure through the bond. She took one small step forward, her right hand wrapping around my hand as her left took my wrist. Her tongue lapped at the blood before her teeth sank into my flesh. I had thought the sharp pain of her fangs was something but feeling her pull my blood into her was almost euphoric. Every mouthful sent electric shocks through me. I could feel tiny sparks flowing through her. I wrapped my free arm around her waist supporting and encouraging her just in case she pulled away too early.

As my wrist healed she bit again and the feeling amplified. I could feel the sparks along my own skin mirroring hers. Feeding my other progeny had always felt good, the bonds humming as they were fed along with their body. It had felt like a vibration inside of me growing outwards. This was more. This was truly unique.

Her pulls tempered off along with her hunger. As my flesh healed once again I felt her tongue lazily lap at the small smear of blood that remained.

She nuzzled her face into my skin before running her nose down into my palm. It looked a though she was chasing my scent. It was delightful to feel and watch, her enjoyment lighting up her face. The bond was buzzing, vibrating intensely and I closed my eyes to enjoy it, to savour the feel of her both inside and out.

I knew this feeling. I had felt it before. She was high.

Eric re-entered the room pausing to take in the room. He closed the door not taking his eyes from me. When Sookie nipped the flesh on my thumb causing my hand to twitch she let out the twinkle of a giggle drawing his eye.

He crossed the room swiftly but silently and I raised my hand higher up her back marvelling as she arched like a cat under my touch. Her eyes fluttered open a large smile displaying blood stained teeth stretching her face as she stared unfocused at Eric.

"She's high," Eric rumbled. He seemed equals parts intrigued and mischievous.

"It appears so. She did not drink much." I had seen my progeny have a carnal reaction to my blood before. They had both drunk from me as I had them. They had enjoyed my blood and then enjoyed each other's flesh. The only other reaction had been the near orgasmic haze Nora had enjoyed but that had faded out after a few moments as they tend to do. Her little hand left mine reaching for Eric's face as he bent low to inspect her closely. She cupped his cheek caressing his cheekbone with her thumb as the hand at my wrist began inching up my arm.

As her fingers slipped under the sleeve of my sweater, her eyes left Eric and came to me. Her pupils were blown, the blackness swallowing the bright blue. There was no focus in her eyes but I could feel her swirling in the bond. The feeling was a pulse inside of me, the heady feeling bleeding into me more and more as she stroked the inside of my elbow.

I watched fascinated as Eric stepped closer. He too seemed affected by her. The mask he wore, the one that only truly disappeared when we had our rare private moments together, was gone and in it's place was a look that bordered on captivation. His large hand slipped to the back of her head, his fingers threading through her blond locks. Her eyes fluttered closed as she began to purr. Turning her head from me she nuzzled into his hand. The hand at Eric's face slid down his neck and down his arm leaving a visual shiver in it's wake.

Bringing up his other hand to caress the other side of her head Eric leaned closer their noses almost touching. His smile grew wide as his own chest rumbled in a matching purr. The sounds combined hitched everything inside of me.

Slowly, almost tentatively, his tongue peaked out licking at the few drops of blood she had missed. As his tongue licked and nipped at her lips and chin her fingers began to dance up and down the skin of my arm. She was was stroking me, caressing me with her fingers and nails. Every touch seemed to be hardwired to a place deep within me, one I had locked down long ago. I wanted more.

Bringing myself closer I dragged my nose up from her wrist to her shoulder to neck, my left hand following the path. She still had my scent upon her skin but it was something more. My shirt frustrated me stopping my from smelling, touching her bare skin. Stepping behind her though gave me better access to her neck. Her scent was ambrosial here intermingled with the scent of me and the faint scent of Eric.

Eric tilted her head giving me more space. I nuzzled in deeper, twisting strands of her hair around the fingers of my right hand. It wasn't enough. I needed more. A slight tug at the collar of the shirt revealed her shoulder to me, the bare skin begging to be touched. I ran my nose from her shoulder to behind her ear. Her purr deepened, physically moving into me as I matched her. I moved closer, flush against her. She leaned her weight back into me.

Running the same path with my tongue I moaned at the taste of her. She tasted exquisite, lingering on my tongue. Licking and nipping at her ear I hear her sigh. It broke off quickly and when I peaked I could see Eric's mouth over hers. The fingers on her left hand embedded themselves in my hair. She was scratching ever so gently at my scalp, the small movement sending lightning through me. I could hear her doing the same to Eric, his groan matching my own.

Licking the length of her neck once more I had the urge to bite. Tightening the grip I had on her hair I licked again nipping at the tender flesh behind her ear with my blunt teeth. Slipping my left hand around her I skimmed over her breast settling on her stomach. Her body moved with my touch arching and sighing. Her hand left my hair, her nails skimming the flesh of my arm once again before wrapping around my hand. I pulled her tighter to me not allowing any space between us. I cursed the clothing I had lent to her. I wanted to feel her. She was on fire and so was I. I loved it, I craved more of it. I could feel them both lit up inside of me.

Eric stepped closer to us. The back of my hand now touched his body and the circuit seemed to explode. Eric's free hand was roaming, touching every part of her he could reach before touching me and then continuing on. He seemed as desperate as I was.

She was soft where I was hard. She was more, so much more and I felt greedy. Sucking at the skin across her shoulder I shuddered as she tasted more delectable each time. I still wanted more. I wanted it all. There was a whisper in my mind. Bite. I pulled her tighter crushing her to me. It repeated again. It sounded like her. Licking her neck once more I sank my fangs in.

Just one mouthful.

The taste that hit my tongue was divine. I needed more. She was moving against me, trying to get closer, her nails piercing the flesh of my hand. Taking another pull my grip turn deadly. It was too much and not enough. The world was fading to nothing but every point we touched, to the erotic dance of her flavour as it moved through me. I bit harder as the bite healed. She was intoxicating.

Like a proverbial bucket of cold water I broke away moving as fast as I was capable to the furthest part of the room. I could her whimper as her hand grasped out at the air. I was heaving for breath, my body wanting to move forward, to go back. I wanted to claim her and keep her, to never leave. The beast was soaring at the taste that lingered on my tongue. My nails scratched into the wall, digging into the plasterwork as I tried to keep away.

Shaking myself free of it I cursed myself for not breaking free earlier. Seeing Eric's free hand grasping onto the torn part of her shirt I knew I would have to put a stop to this before it went too far. I was all too aware of her innocence in these matters.

I called to Eric hoping it would break him free. His mouth broke away from hers. He sought me out, eyes moving wildly through the room. Her whimper drew him back however. Both her hands were on him and I knew how indescribable that must feel. He was now as drunk as she was. I called again putting more power to it. His mouth broke from hers again.

"Release her," I said softly trying not to breath in her scent too much. I could not let myself fall back into it. It wasn't a command for now but if he didn't release her willingly I would make it one. He was still close to her but I could tell with the way his body sagged he had removed his hands. He staggered away a step staring at her in disbelief as his hands ran through his dishevelled hair. I heard her whimper and whine as her hands grasped at air again her eyes still closed.

With each passing second Eric's eyes returned to normal, his stance hardening back to the vampire I know. I could see in his eyes he needed answers. I debated my next course of action. I was sure of what I had learnt but he would be a welcomed second in this. If he slipped again I could rein him in. There would be no risk.

"Taste," and with a small nod of my head he stepped forward licking the small trail of blood that remained as she healed. He drew back faster than I had, almost sending her stumbling as she lost her new grip on him. Eric moved beside me at an alarming speed, his eyes wide as he stared at her.

"How did you not drain her dry?" he asked his voice hoarse. We both watched as she swayed where she stood.

"She tasted sweeter than most humans. She did not taste like this. I can only assume her turning brought it forward more."

"Your blood is making her high."

"Yes as it would any Fae."


	10. Chapter 10

A/N: I want to say a big thankyou to every reader, every reviewer, every person who has favourited or followed this story. It is amazing to see so many people reading this story. I've answered everyone I could but I want to say a big thankyou to the guests who have reviewed. I can't answer you personally but know that every single word is wonderful. I get jitters each time there is an alert in my are all is now my highest reviewed story and that is maybe, sort of, kind of crazy to me. I usually expect a nod of the good story here and there if that so to have this, it is truly amazing. I think I've said before I don't write for reviews. That is not why I pick up a pen and start scribbling. Everytime I see one though and see that people like what I write and like the story that I am creating around these characters it makes me think that I am on the right track. It does worry me sometimes that it may become predictable. I hope it doesn't.

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><p>I was warm and safe. There were no worries in my head just a lightness, like my mind was a cloudless sky. Touching Godric was so unusual. Every touch I placed on his skin felt like it was on me. I could feel my hands touching myself through touching him. It was overwhelming when he in turn touched me. Lightning sparks and heat, fire and ice dancing on me and in me and around me. It made me want more, made me want to touch him more so he would touch me more.<p>

Feeling Godric's mouth at my neck I wanted him to bite. I wanted that hard edge of pain. If everything felt so good how good would it feel to have his teeth, his fangs, in me as part of me? Words couldn't leave my mouth not once Eric began kissing me. It was slow full of teeth and tongue. He tasted so amazing. The feel of his tongue tangling with mine was exquisite, soft yet hard, smooth yet rough. The tangle of his hand in my hair, the feel of his nails gripping onto my scalp brought a sharp edge to the pleasure. It sent me gasping but his mouth never stopped nipping at my lips til I kissed him back more.

The feel of the two of them pressed against me was like torture. A few thin layers of fabric was stopping me from getting more, touching more. I wanted, no needed, skin lots of skin. Godric licked the skin of my neck chasing it with his fangs. I couldn't stop my body from moving, reacting to the heavenly feeling of his tongue lapping at my skin and my blood. My body needed to be closer to him, needed to feel more of him. I could feel every drop running into him being part of him. I was still kissing Eric and I wished I could kiss Godric too. I wanted to feel the sensation of his tongue every where upon me.

Then he was gone and my body ached for him. The feelings disappeared, faded away. Eric stopped kissing me so I reached to kiss him but he was holding me too tightly. A sound came from my throat that sounded faintly like a whimper and then he was back and something inside of me rejoiced. I put my other hand on him sliding down his firm chest before tugging trying to find skin again.

His mouth left me once more and then his hands too. My hands grasped at air trying to touch him again. He was still close to me but stepping forward seemed so hard. I felt a tongue swipe at my neck and my hands closed around the clothing that brushed against me. It was Eric. I could smell him but as he moved away I lost my grip and almost stumbled.

There was a cool breeze that tingled over my skin, the sensation sending a shiver down my spine. I straightened my head flopping back as I smiled. It felt strange to smile, my face pulling and stretching and I almost wanted to laugh. I did and the feeling in my chest and my throat was like a vibration. Opening my eyes I felt like I could see my laugh moving away from me.

I was floating staring at blue sky and everything was right, everything was good. Even the clouds that were slowly drifting couldn't stop me from smiling.

*-*-*-GODRIC*-*-*-

"How could it affect us?" Eric asked as the silence ran on.

"The bond. Her euphoria overwhelmed the bond we share." I still felt unsure. The whole experience felt like it still was not over.

"From you it spread to me through our bond."

"It appears so. Touch seemed to intensify it."

"Do you believe she knows?"

"No. If she knew of the Fae she would have known of us." I know his next question though it pained me he would have doubt. "There was no deception. I would have known. Even as weak as our connection may be I would have detected it. She is an open book though a confused, highly emotional book."

"The Fae were very gifted." Of all of my teachings when it came to the other supernaturals this was the one aspect of the Fae he never forgot. He had compared them to witches for some time until he came across one. That had never happened since.

"Yes. With how diluted it was in her human blood I doubt it manifested itself in anything but her beauty. Hybrids with the spark left with the Fae to their plane." There was something unaccountably different about Sookie however. In Eric's check there seemed to be nothing unusual about the family save for the death of most of them. She however did have the moniker gifted by the town folk. Perhaps there was more to my new childe than met the eye.

Sookie was humming something now. The tune was not something I recognised. She rarely stayed in key whether that was because she was intoxicated I was not sure. I could still feel her in the bond but it was a weaker feeling than before. It was still a heady feeling but there was none of the compulsion I had felt before. She felt content.

"Can you still feel her?" I asked curious if the feeling was still shared now it appeared to be diminishing.

"It is faint." I nodded my understanding. His demeanour was more relaxed now the urge was gone.

"I believe she is beginning to return to herself." I watched as the sway she had began to fade until her body remained almost motionless aside from the occasional side to side rock.

"I have done as you asked. Will you tell her?" Even though his face remained neutral I knew his task would bother him. It would not be the only thing I would do for her but I would not allow her to be aware of it.

"No. I will tell her when I must. She must let go of that life to survive in this one."

"You believe she will?" I could sense his doubt within the bond along with his concern. The concern was not for her but for me. I had never lost a childe. I had no intention of ever losing one.

"Yes. She worked hard to ensure the survival of herself and her human family. I believe that strength will serve her well in this life." That was one thing I was sure of. She had a fighter spirit one that reminded of the days of old. So many now were about instant gratification. All the humans wanted was more. More money more belongings. There was no talk of earning, of respecting anything. They barely even respected themselves.

Sookie's body movement changed. The way it moved shifted from its slight sway to a jagged stumble. I checked the bond finding no distress of any kind.

"Godric," was all she whispered before tumbling to the floor. I sped forward catching her before her head hit the wood.

"Sookie?" I pushed aside her hair checking her over physically as I checked the bond. Had I not known the hour I would have assumed she was dead for the day. A deeper check confirmed what I believed.

"She is dead for the day," though it wasn't said as a question I replied as such. "It is two hours before sunrise."

I didn't need to look at the clock yet I did. What he said was true and it was a true mystery to me.

Lifting her slight weight was easy. I crossed to the bed laying her down carefully on the right side. I eased a few strands of hair away from her face and eased the collar of my shirt back into place. She looked so young, so innocent, so peaceful.

"Could it be the blood?"

"Perhaps though I have never heard of such a thing before. I did not take enough to weaken her. I have never known a newborn to go to rest so early."

"It is unlikely a maker would share such a weakness."

"True," I stepped away from the bed heading through a door to the adjoining room. Though I knew our discussion would not disturb her it was not one I wished to have whilst in her presence. "I will see it this is a permanent situation." Stepping towards a wing backed chair I sat easing my weight back as I settled.

Taking in the size of the room I noted it could easily be changed should my childe wish for a place of her own. I would not force her to stay in my presence when it came to rest but I had no desire to allow her to be too far away, not for some time.

"She will rest with you?"

"For now. There is room for you still as there always is for Nora."

"Should you make any more children you will need a bigger bed." He sat in the chair opposite his elbows resting upon his knees as he leaned towards me. "Do you believe you will?"

"I had no desire to make a childe until I saw you. I was content in our existence feeling no need for another until we discovered Nora. For some time I had believed that my time with newborns was meant only for my duties as Sheriff until I saw her." It was not the definitive answer that he wanted but it was the truth. I would not know if I would create another childe until I saw them.

"You will have your hands full with that one." I smirked as he leaned into the chair back his smirk now mirroring mine. He seemed to like making this point.

"As I have been with each of my children."

"Her clothing will arrive in the morning. Pam says hello."

"You had your childe purchase the clothing?"

"Yes. She enjoys giving my credit cards a workout and would do a much better job than I. At least that is what she believes." He smirked as he spoke of her as he usually did when we were alone.

"You have purchased my new childe a complete wardrobe?" The maker in me bristled at such an outlandish thing. She was mine to provide for, mine to protect. I knew he had meant no disrespect but there was still a part of me that was displeased.

"I have purchased a gift for my new sister. If she is anything like Pam you will be cancelling cards by the year's end." I knew well of the shopping habits of my childe's childe. There had at times been parcels arriving for myself. Always tasteful and always to my style and needs. I could never fault them.

"Knowing what we do of her do you believe that would be a problem? I believe getting her to accept such an outlandish offering will be difficult." He seemed to concede to my observations and a small part of me was glad. Though I may have granted an amount of leniency at times with my progeny I had never spoilt them with worldly things. There always was, and there still is, the probability of needing to leave an area on short notice requiring things to be left behind. The thought of leaving an area moved me on to my next situation with her.

"Her new identity will be completed tomorrow. With such an unusual name it must be changed. I will give her the opportunity of choosing for herself." Eric it seemed had no response to this. I had given Eric and Nora the same privilege. I would loathe to take away something so significant for her, particularly one that could help separate her from her human life.

"The friends are still here," That was not surprising. "They have spent the day answering questions with the police. They found her bag and belongings next to the puddle of blood in the alley."

"What of the friends now? Do they believe she is dead?"

"They have spent the night combing the streets looking for her. Neither of them believe she is gone though the police have urged them to be prepared for the worst."

"I will give them a few more days. If they have not left I may have them urged to return to their lives." A little glamour to help them see they needed to return to their livelihoods was easy. It would keep both myself and my progeny safe.

"They have been on television," my attention was peaked now. This would make things more difficult to move around. "Her picture has been on every channel through the day and the topic of most news broadcasts."

"Over two thousand people go missing each day and they focus on this one."

"A pretty little blond with a sweet disposition going missing is a headline."

"This will become much more difficult than I imagined."


	11. Chapter 11

A/N: I have a favour to ask. I cannot decide on Sookie's new name. I keep going around and around wanting something that has meaning to her but not revealing too much about who she is should anyone start sticking their nose around. A few suggestions would be fantastic.

I'm not sure whether to continue to write her under the Sookie name unless she is introduced so it doesn't get confusing or purely by her new name for the same reason.

I don't own any of the characters they belong to CH and Lestat belongs to AR. He is only mentioned by name and is with Anne's name and is meant as a fictional character from the books not an actual vampire. Hope I don't offend or break any rule with that one. It is meant only as a comparison.

* * *

><p>*-*-*GODRIC*-*-*-<p>

Eric rose from his seat leaving me to think on what we had learned this evening. I was not sure where he was headed but I felt the bond stretch as he left the house only to return again after a few moments. Rising from my own seat I headed into the bedroom. I paused at the doorway. The lamps cast her in such a soft light. I continued to the bed sitting beside her.

I watched her for a few moments. She was so beautiful. Her blond hair, so fine, was curled around her face and spread across the pillow. The muted tones of the sheets gave her a little colour but the paleness associated with being a vampire could easily be seen. She glowed and it was more than the vampire within her, it was her.

My blood within her called to me and I wanted to be near her as I knew she would want to be near me. This early time was always so enjoyable as it brought the world back into view again only from a new perspective. I could see it all again through her eyes as I had with Eric and Nora before her. Taking one final look I moved away from her beginning my nightly routine.

Checking the windows were closed I headed to the control panel hidden behind the mirror. Inputting the code I listened to the multiple clicks of the locks setting into place before the whirring of the shutters beginning to descend filled the room. Whilst the locks on the windows serve as a human deterrent the shutters provided protection not only from the sun but also from any day walking supernaturals. With its silver sprayed coating over an iron base there was very few who could truly get through without causing themselves great injury and without waking me first.

Although to all, my nest mates included, it is believed this is a dummy room. Supposedly I have a private underground bunker, made purely for myself and my progeny, which is where I truly go to my day rest when I remain here.

My other homes are not like this one. I share none of my others with anyone outside of my bloodline and even then there are some that I do not. Some do have a renovated basement, others rooms hidden within rooms. One safe house can be described as nothing more than a cement closet whilst another a full fledged mansion with a multitude of places for me to rest.

With the windows taken care of I move away. I will not yet lock the bedroom door. Eric knows if he wishes to rest within my suite he must be here before sun rise. As much as I have rooms for both visitors and guests they are not of the same standard as I am surrounded with in here. Even if he has found himself a little companionship for the remaining time I know he will not resist returning back here. He does so love his luxury.

Eric and I have always been close. From the moment I saw him I was drawn to him but it was more than that afterwards. He is my kin as I am his. It has always been that way. I couldn't imagine it ever not. With our time apart now greater than our time together we have both seemed to make a little more effort from time to time. We both have eternity but even that is not guaranteed.

Slowly removing each piece of clothing I head to the closet for something to sleep in. Though I would regularly sleep naked her religious upbringing would override any instinct her vampire nature would provide and I would not like to make this uncomfortable. The likelihood that she would wake anything close to what I was capable of was unlikely but I would not want to jeopardise any standing I had with her now by causing a situation I could so easily prevent. There was no doubt that there would eventually be a time when she would feel comfortable to be that open and free with me but that time was not now.

With my dirty clothing in the hamper I pull on a pale pair of linen trousers not too dissimilar to the pair she is sleeping in. I pause as I tie them. I am again changing the basic fundamentals that I had used with Eric and Nora. It does not truly matter. To force the issue would remove any ground that I had managed to gain so far. She is much too innocent for me to push too hard so soon.

Climbing into the bed I slipped under the sheets beside her. Though none of us would move around during the day I had not put her near the end of the bed. Instead I had laid her close to me allowing me to have her by my side almost the same way as we had rested only last night. There was still plenty of time before the sun would call me to rest but I wanted to be here. Taking her hand in mine I marvelled at the differences in her skin. The back of her hand was as smooth and cool as marble yet her palm and her fingers carried the signs of hard work just as mine and Eric's did. From Eric I knew she had worked tremendously hard to support herself and her Gran and from the callous skin I could feel I could only guess that from a young age she had also toiled in the garden. If she had needed so many jobs for them to afford to live it was likely they had grown their own food.

It was not the only place I could see signs of the life she had led. The faint shadows under her eyes spoke of a great deal of sleeplessness and I can only imagine how constantly not earning enough must have caused tremendous strain upon her. Though her body was curved and shapely there was very little thickness to her body. There was however the hint of muscle tone beneath her skin that could only come from consistent heavy lifting. From the sounds of it all her jobs had a manual side to them. She was certainly not hiding away in a cubicle somewhere deep within an office or call centre like so many do in these times.

The faint sound of footsteps nearing the door catches my attention but I quickly determine it is Eric. He enters silently thought there is no need. His heavy booted feet are silent on the wooden floor as he closes the door and crosses to my side, his eyes on her form. He removes his clothing efficiently not making more of it like I expected of him. I believe that has more to do with her being at rest than anything more. It is not as though I haven't seen anything he has before. He does surprise me however when he heads to the closet and returns seconds later in a pair of boxers. I did not believe he even owned such a garment.

I can only guess it is for her benefit as his eyes linger on her for just a moment before he joins me taking the opposite side to her. Propping himself up on an elbow he looks over me and down to her. If I didn't know any better I would say he is trying to see into her head.

"You are different with her," he says quietly though if it were not for my vampire hearing I doubt I would have heard him. As it always is with Eric his perceptions are correct.

"I am well aware. I do not mean to be." There is a pinch of jealousy in our bond and I can only hope this will work itself out as it had with Nora. With Nora and him engaging in a physical relationship shortly after her rising the feeling was eliminated over a short span of time. I doubt that will be the case between the two of them.

I can feel the pull of the sun and with a barely audible click the locks in the door slide into place. As with the balcony, the door also as an electronic keypad that sets multiple metal bars running from within the walls through the door and into the other side. Though it automatically locks a little before sunrise every day there is a way to over ride it should I find myself on the other side of the door. It is not the only entrance or exit but it is the only known one other than the balcony. The other does not even exist on the blue prints to the house and I would prefer to not use it so that should I ever truly have need of it, it will be a valid means of escape.

* * *

><p>Before I opened my eyes I check the surrounding area with all of my senses. I could pick up no sign of anyone other than my progeny beside me nor was there any sign that anyone had been in the room whilst we were at rest.<p>

The moment I opened my eyes I looked left and then right. They were both still at rest. With a look to the clock I took note of my earlier wake time. I usually remained dead to the world for at least another two hours. It seemed nothing would be as it was now she was in my life.

Climbing from the bed I picked up my laptop from it's hiding place in the closet and returned back to my spot on the bed. I would not normally work in the bed if alone but if I had one of my progeny with me I would remain. The blood always rejoiced when we were close together.

Sifting through my accounts I checked my stocks and shares and checked into my numerous email accounts for the updates on my many worldwide businesses. I had come into quite a fortune over the last few centuries through some very well placed deals. They were even more rewarding as I had not used glamour to acquire them nor did I steal them as so many of my counterparts would. No, this was from sheer work and a little gamble here and there. I would need to set up accounts in her name soon. Though I could see that she was a proud woman she would come to understand if she did not already that it was my responsibility in these early years to provide for her every need. I would imagine her definition and mine may not be too dissimilar. She did not seem to be one for worldly possessions.

I was reaching the end of an email response to a Were who was the master of a local pack when I felt Eric awaken. He too did as I had though I believe it was more habit than believing there was a need. The chances I was sitting here live and well if there was a threat was very slim.

"You are dealing with Weres?" he asked a slight sneer on his face.

"The proposition is a profitable one and one that would provide a great deal of jobs and protection to the supernatural community in my area. I see no need not to acquire such acquaintances. They may prove to be invaluable in the future."

"I do not trust them."

"Yet you still deal with them?"

"As sheriff, and as individuals if they owe me."

"How many owe you?" I asked but he only flashed me a fangy grin. In truth the less I knew about Eric's dealings the better. Whilst I could not protect him if I remained ignorant I knew there were many underhanded ways in which many of the favours were accrued.

After an hour of still no sign of her waking I knew her late rising looked to be the norm though I had hoped it was not. A part of me wished to blame the activities of the night and of my taking her blood but it would not be the truth of the matter.

I could already hear the early signs of the house coming to life. There was a meeting today, one I knew I could not avoid nor hand over to my second. He was the progeny of an old associate and though I did not care for the progeny he was greatly loyal. His crass over zealous ways left a lot to be desired though I had witnessed worse.

Eric had done exactly as I had. Upon rising he had descended upon his laptop, answering messages and making the correspondence required of his position as sheriff of his own area before moving onto his own private businesses. Like myself most if these businesses were held by shell corporations leaving us free to move around and change identities and still have access to them. The modern age is surely a wonderful thing.

Another hour passed and I knew I had to begin preparing. Though the meeting was purely a formality so I could acknowledge his extended stay in the area whilst he was with his maker, it was always done in person and it was always granted. Neither of them were any trouble. They socialised but generally kept to themselves. Any who were fed upon were glamoured and given a little something for their trouble and were always returned to where they belonged. Given the progeny's usual associates I had to wonder if the good behaviour was at the behest of his maker.

Returning my laptop back to its hidden place in my closet I headed to the shower. Her blood soaked dress was still resting in the sink. It was ruined beyond repair and I could imagine she would not wish for it to remain. Very few wanted a reminder of their turning. It would be gone before she woke.

Turning on the shower I quickly cleaned myself down noting how her scent lingered in the room from her shower the night before.

Stepping out I left the water running knowing Eric would follow me. Wrapping a towel around my waist I sped into the bedroom stopping for a second to examine her still body before speeding into the closet. Pairing a fine knit sweater with linen I dressed quickly. Every few seconds I would prod at the bond I shared with her but there was still no sign of her rising for the evening.

If this was to continue I would need to avoid making appointments for directly after sunset unless I remained here. Staying in one place was dangerous for the both of us. We would need to step away for a short time until I could evaluate the situation fully. I had not stepped away from my position for any length of time since I had taken it almost fifty years ago. It would mean a meeting with his majesty but I doubted there would be any problem. Were I to take Sookie along she could swear fealty. It would be earlier than necessary but it would give her some measure of protection.

Returning to the room I listened to downstairs whilst I watched her. I could hear my appointment arrive and from the sound of it he had brought one of his many associates with him. They knew he was a vampire but his money and a little glamour stopped them from talking to anyone about it. They lived in luxury, had every whim catered for, never had to work and they would provide him with blood or any other service. Should he choose someone else while he was here, as I knew he frequently did, he or she would simply leave them be unless otherwise told. It was an arrangement that suited all for a time.

Crossing to the keypad I set it to unlock. I would leave the shutters and windows until she woke. I would know of any comings and goings though I doubted anyone would be upstairs now vampires and their pets were gathering. Feeling Eric begin to move quickly I opened the door allowing him to pass before closing it again. It had barely been closed a moment when it opened again and Eric entered a large rail following him through the door. It seemed his gift had arrived. Watching him move it into the other room I assured myself that she would be safe one more time. I knew I could return once this meeting was over. If she rose as late as she had last night I still had time.

With a final glance I headed downstairs.

There was a chorus of sheriff each accompanied by a nod as I passed through the hallway towards the main room. I knew them all by sight and could recall in almost explicit detail when they arrived, who they associated with and any altercations they'd had both in my area and the ten years before hand. Sometimes having an eidetic memory could be a bonus but in my long life it has also been a curse. Remembering everything you have every done in fine detail could be a burden on the conscience.

As I entered the main living area I could see my guest had already made himself at home. Were it not for the fact he had been visiting the area as long as I had been sheriff I would take it as a sign of disrespect. It was however quite a human gesture, one that intrigued me as it otherwise contradicted the vampire persona he perpetrated to all who surrounded him. I believed the only one who truly knew him was his maker.

"Ah Sheriff I was wondering if you had sequestered yourself away. Isabel tells me you have a new childe." Manuel did at least rise from his seat as I approached.

"Good Evening Manuel. It is true I have a new progeny." The less I said on Sookie the better. I was not sure she was ready to deal with vampires such as him.

"Your underlings tell me she is quite beautiful. Is she here? I see no new faces." He was looking around now scanning behind me.

"She is here though not downstairs." I would not mention her beauty. Never one to brag about my progeny I wished to divert attention away from her as much as I possibly could.

"What a shame. Perhaps I will see her whilst I am visiting." He looked positively gleeful and there was a heavy weight of anger and jealousy hanging inside of me.

"Perhaps. Are you staying your usual length of time?" I needed to get this back onto official proceedings so I could return to Sookie. I did not wish for her to rise alone after last night.

"A little longer. He has asked me to stay for ten nights. I am in need of a fresh start so it is easy for me to do. My neighbours were asking a few too many questions. If I glamoured the old woman downstairs anymore she would become a potted plant." He looked quite put out by needing to move again but then he was usually covering up the volume of men and women coming to his apartment. The last time it was an issue he had to flee Seattle as he was suspected to have been a drug dealer.

"Does your sheriff know of your move?" I asked hoping he had followed protocol. If he had left without saying a word I would need to contact the sheriff myself.

"She does. She was sad to let me go but was willing to help me relocate as easily as possible. The building belongs to my maker so I have no need to move out as such. I can move back again in a few years. Plastic surgeons can do wonders these days don't know you," he deadpanned. It was not the first time I had heard him say that in the last two decades but he had yet to move back to an area he had already lived in aside from this one. This is where he spent his early years. His maker brought him here after he found and turned him in California.

I felt something through the bond. I felt for it and discovered she had awoke. Taking note of the time I slipped back into the conversation. He was speaking of a hotel in the area, one that I knew well as I owned it, and how convenient it was going to be once the renovations were to be completed. I agreed wholeheartedly. What had once been an underground car lot was now a fully bricked off underground area with rooms for vampires. I was now in the process of integrating the black out shutters to every floor giving more rooms for vampires to stay in without drawing attention to ourselves but still allowing for humans and other day walking supernaturals to come and go as they pleased unawares.

The hunger hit me like a kick to the stomach. Thankfully I was able to hide my reaction but Eric's glance from across the room told me I hadn't hidden it from him. From the hunger came anger and then finally a wave of pure blood lust. I extracted myself from the conversation as quickly and politely as possible. It took only a quick introduction to one of our newer on site donors, a buxom red headed beauty with, from what I hear, quite a few talents, and then I made my escape. Eric had just reached the top of the stairs when I sped up them passing him by as I opened the door to my suite. What sat before me filled me with anger and guilt.

-*-*-*SOOKIE-*-*-*

My mind heard, felt, her presence before my eyes opened. Her mind was a mess of thoughts, fighting and jumbling over each other. There were spotty parts, blanks here and there as though she was trying to think of something but had hit a wall. I remained as still as I could. I was actually thankful I had no need to breathe because I knew it would have given me away. There was no way I could have kept it even whilst listening to her. I couldn't sort through her mind and still pretend to be asleep or dead or whatever I am during the day.

_Can't believe this. He's in place. He can be important, he is important. My master. Have to end her. Can't let her ruin everything. They won't know. They won't think it was me._

Her thoughts blurred to visuals, the room, a piece of wood in her hand, a blood puddle soaking the bed.

She was going to kill me.

A rage I had never felt before filled me. It took up every part of me casting everything into red. My body moved on instinct, rising from the bed and launching itself at her. My legs wrapped around her slim waist. My right hand gripped her wrist, the one holding a wooden stake, whilst the other gripped her hair yanking her head to the side. My fangs sank into her flesh. The feel of the skin giving way under my fangs made something inside of me roar in triumph. I drank and drank though most of it was pouring out drenching the two of us.

Every struggle fed something in me, much deeper than the blood was fulfilling. There was no way I was letting go. There was a crunch and a whimper but her weak attempts at fighting, the sound of her heart beat slowing made me bite down again harder this time. My fangs slipped through the flesh of her skin like a hot knife through butter.

Her struggles tapered off and she slowly sank down to the floor taking me with her. I pulled back licking at the slow moving rivulets of blood still leaking from her throat as her heart stuttered and failed, stuttered then stopped. I released my grip on her letting her hit the floor with a hollow thud. The light was fading from her eyes then they just stared up at the ceiling.

It took too long for the red haze to fade bringing me back to myself. I felt like someone just pulled the plug on me sending me off balance. Landing with a harsh bump on my butt I didn't have time to move my hands away from my mouth. Looking at the body in front of me I caught myself licking around my lips. Bringing my tongue back inside of my mouth I brought a hand to my lips. The colour of it stopped me. It was covered in blood, thick and sticky and all I wanted to do was lick every drop of it away.

Pushing my body further in to the bed at my back I brought my hand down to my lap catching sight of Godric's shirt drenched in blood. My body trembled, the image so close to what I had been the last time I woke.

As fast as I could manage I fled to the bathroom trying not to look in the large mirror. Skittering to a halt at the horrifying image of myself face splattered with blood, my chin and mouth and neck smeared with it.

Fumbling with the shower stall I pulled on the handle my hands slipping because of the blood. I turned the dial not caring what temperature it landed on. A spray of ice cold water fell on me causing me to tense up all over but I started to scrub at my face and hands keeping my eyes closed so I wouldn't see any more of the blood than I really had to.

I could see her face behind my eye lids, her face twisted in pain and horror. I could see the red pool surrounding her soaking into the rug, the ripped and torn mess at her throat, flesh hanging free where I had torn it loose.

As the tears came for what I had done, for what I had become I slid down the tiled wall.

A growl from nearby woke something in me, that part that had sung as I hurt her. It was followed by a touch so gentle to the top of my head. I knew who it was. There were only two people who brought so much warmth to me and one was miles away. I opened my eyes but the sight of my blood tainted hands had me slamming them closed again.

_What have I done?_

_What had to be done._

_I killed her._

_She was attempting to kill you little one. You were merely defending yourself._

_But I did that. I did what he did._

_You are nothing like Russell Edgington. You are one day old. You have not yet come to tame your basic instincts. Russell was three thousand years old. He acted that way as he was able to, as he wished to. You do not._

_How do you know?_

_You would not be in here weeping otherwise. I find myself proud of you._

_Why? I killed her._

_You defended yourself. She was going to stake you as you slept._

_I saw it._

_In your mind?_ My eyes flew open searching for his own. Frozen in shock I stared at him waiting for him to do something. _Little one I haven't spoken a word since I entered the room._

If it was at all possible my eyes grew even wider as my mouth dropped open. Gran would have been appalled but given the revelation he had made I would guess she would be doing the same were she here. My mouth was moving trying for words I could not speak. I watched him rise up, his hand held out towards me.

"Come." I took the hand he offered rising up to my feet. Both of his hands came to my face, his thumbs brushing along my cheeks as the cold water continued to pour down on us.

"We will talk," he said softly, his words as much of a caress as his hands. One left my face reaching behind him. The water began to heat up as his hand returned to my face. I couldn't take my eyes away from his face. The longer I looked the calmer I felt. It was him I knew that. He had explained to me how he could send to me, even through our bond. He'd told me it would help me but he would only do it if he truly believed it was for the best.

He placed the softest of kisses to the top of my head before moving around me and stepping out of the shower. I could faintly see him taking off his soaked sweater before the steam covered my view.

Stepping under the hot spray I turned my head up wishing the water could wash away what I had done as easily as it washed away the blood. After several minutes I began pulling off my sodden clothing. Both pieces fell with a slap, the water streaking in colour down the drain as it still tried to wash them clean.

Reaching for the soap I quickly washed myself marvelling at the way it smelled a little woodsy, a little earthy. Godric.

Turning off the water I slid the door open and reached for a towel from the rail. This one was enormous and so fluffy and soft. It felt like a cloud against my skin. I ran it through my hair quickly before wrapping it around myself. It came down passed my knees and wrapped around me almost twice.

Reaching the door I paused. I wasn't sure what I would find on the other side of that door. Would I still feel as horrid as I had once I saw her again? Pulling up my big girl panties I picked up Godric's discarded sweater from the floor tossing it into the shower with my ruined clothing. I supposed technically it was all Godric's as I didn't have a stitch of clothing that was in anything close to a wearable condition. Opening the door back into the bedroom I waited for the steam to clear. When it did I expected my eyes to zone in on the you-know-what. Instead they were drawn to the expanse of skin on display.

Godric stood at the foot of the bed facing away from me, his legs encased in dark grey linen. They looked expensive and were clearly tailored defining the contours of his body. Most of my attention was in the bare skin of his back. He looked so pale especially against the dark ink of his tattoos.

I'd seen ink of course even in our small town (though we didn't have our own tattooist) but never anything like this. These weren't perfectly black machine made tattoos. This was made with needle and pigment, hours of pain for meaning beyond rebellion.

Seeing him standing there pale skin practically glowing in the low light I felt like a hussy. The way I had touched, the way I reacted last night. I lost my head and let my body's urges take over. The way I had rubbed myself up against not just Godric but Eric as well wasn't ladylike at all. I teased then taunted them both. Gran hadn't raised me to be that way.

I should have been embarrassed. I should have been mortified with the way I acted but seeing him like that I wanted to touch him again. Maybe the feeling hadn't been relegated to last night. Godric had said I would feel free and powerful and that I would want in excess. Perhaps this was it. Perhaps this was like going through a second puberty. The first was bad enough.

Shaking the thoughts free of my mind I stepped further into the room tightening the hold I had on the towel wrapped around me. Moving further into the room my eyes were drawn back to the smooth lines that wove across his spine. My eyes locked onto what looked like a brand. The thought of someone laying claim to him like that made my feet stop.

He began to turn then obviously feeling my eyes upon him. As he turns my eyes continue to skim across him, over his shoulder to his torso to the tattooed necklace across his collar. Though I'm staring at a very defined, very naked chest all I can think about it that brand. It must have hurt. Could it still hurt? Even after all this time it still looked angry and bloody, the skin looking raw.

"Do not think on it," is all he says, his voice as even and calm as always. My eyes instantly move to his.

Closing the small gap between us I wrap my arms around him resting my head on his chest. My ear would be right where his beating heart would be if it still made a sound. Whether I'm taking comfort for the pain I feel for him or giving it for something that must have happened before my ancestors were anything more than a twinkle in the night's sky I'm not sure. Being here this close to him feels like home, even more so when I feel his arms wrap around me.

His bare skin against mine feels wonderful and I can't help but want more. Laying my hands flat on his back I spread out my fingers desperate to feel as much of him as I can. I can hear snippets from his head here and there but none of it is in English. The language is melodic even in the fits and starts I can pick up. It's beautiful really and that combined with the feel of him wrapping me up as me nuzzling my head into him.

Even with just the small movements of my head I can smell him better and stronger. His scent is thrilling and makes me think of the heat of the shower as I cleaned myself down with his smell on the steam. It was just so... I mentally bop myself on the head. I needed to clear my mind of all that. Gran raised a lady and though I might be a fair bit different than I was before I should still try to make her proud. I still couldn't let go though.

"Why does it feel so good?" I asked a little mortified that I had actually asked him that question.

"It is the blood. My blood calls to the blood within you." I can hear the smile on his face though I have my doubts about why it is really there.

"Oh," was all I could think to say my mind and hormones apparently still stuck on him. _I think I would have enjoyed it even without it._ I'm sure I hear him chuckle in my mind.

"Let us finish dressing. We have much to discuss you and I." My eyes instantly fall to where the body of the woman I killed should have been. Instead there was only a few splashes of red and a dark red puddle.

I stepped away from him. I was about to step away again pulling my arms free from around his waist when my brain decided to wake up. The dress from the night club was ruined and the outfit Godric had loaned me to sleep in was covered in blood and torn in places. I had nothing to wear. Closing my eyes I questioned my own competence at having failed to realise all of my belongings were at the hotel and I wouldn't be allowed to get them. Re-opening my eyes I opened my mouth to say something only to see him pointing. There was a faint smile on his face though his lips had barely moved. I followed the direction he was pointing to a closed door. I cautiously moved towards it casting a look over my shoulder to see if I was right. I wasn't sure how I could be wrong. Other than the door there was nothing much other than wall.

Pushing the door open just a little I peaked inside keeping a grip on the towel so it wouldn't slip. There looked to be nothing untoward but there was a large free standing rail full of clothing and a stack of boxes beside it.

Opening the door a little wider I stepped inside looking back once again as my toes sank into the room's thick rug. I could feel how amused he was with me and I actually felt like rolling my eyes at him. I didn't but I felt like it and given by the way his smile suddenly got bigger I would have to guess he felt it too.

Crossing the room I ran my hand over the plastic covered clothing, marvelling at the sheer volume. There weren't even this many clothes hanging in my closet at home. I stopped that thought. I shouldn't really think of Gran's house as my home anymore. It didn't stop the ache though nor did it stop the fact that if I could I would be there right now.

Piece by piece I pulled off the hangers looking over everything that hung there. The dresses and skirts were classy, very much like what I had and would normally wear but these looked much more expensive. The jeans were thicker than anything I could have ever afforded.

As I reached the far end I gasped when I realised the stacks were shoes and lingerie. There were three times as many shoes and boots here than I owned before and out of the five pairs I had, two of them were purely for work.

I didn't know what we would be doing tonight but if I was to be around the vampires I saw last night I would need to look my best. Thinking of being around them was a little intimidating. I had no clue what any of them were capable of and I certain wasn't sure what I was capable of in this new body. With what had happened before between me and that woman I wasn't really sure I would be allowed around them. Maybe I couldn't be trusted yet. I didn't know if she belonged to someone. She could have just been one of the donors Godric had told me about but if she did belong to someone then I would be in for a punishment.

I'd never been punished before and certainly not in any way that Godric would be required to punish me. I had always done my best to follow my parents' and then Gran's every word. I never stepped out of line, always tried my hardest, tried to never make a fuss, always worked my hardest. Just the thought of it was a deep breath I pushed away my anxiety. I did it and from that meant I had to be a grown up and face it. With my false bravery back in place I began skimming though the leather and lace, cashmere and silk. I felt a little like Alice falling down the rabbit hole but there was no way for me to climb back out now.

"Everything to your liking?" Had my heart still beat I know it would have stopped right then and there. I practically turned in mid air I whipped around so fast. There stood leaning against a wing backed chair was Eric in all his leather clad glory. He really was what you would expect when someone said vampire. Tall, broad, good looking and looking like sin wrapped in black and leather. It was only the blond hair and blue eyes that made him look more Viking than Dracula but then Anne Rice's Lestat had blond hair.

"They're beautiful."

"It is customary to say thank you I believe."

"You bought all of these?" I glanced to the open door wary as to whether he was telling the truth or not. Godric would be able to hear us easily so I doubted he would lie and take credit for something he had done. He had told me he would provide for me and I had told him that didn't feel right.

"Yes. They are a gift for my new sister," he said as he drank me in from head to toe. I may as well have stood there naked as the day I was born with the way he looked at me. I cringed inwardly when I tightened my hand on the towel knowing that I was very nearly naked.

"You know it's a little weird calling me your sister and leering at me at the same time. I may be Southern but I'm not that Southern." I could have sworn I saw his mouth twitch but it settled back so quickly I thought I was imagining things.

"You will come to see that titles like this mean very little when it comes to vampires and sex. Nora and I have had plenty of good times over the years."

Trying not to react to that and the images suddenly playing in his head of the last little tryst he and a little brunette, I could only assume was this Nora Godric's other childe, had I turned back to the rail desperately trying to keep my face neutral. The clothing was so overwhelming. The cost of it all must have been staggering. A voice that sounded suspiciously like Gran told me not to accept such a overzealous gift. I was a simple girl at heart and never really wanted or imagined having anything like this. But by saying no I could not only insult someone a heck of a lot older than me, who went out of his way to do something for me but also leave myself with nothing to wear and no money with which to buy anything. The most I could do was be gracious in my acceptance of his gift.

Settling on a pale blue dress that was very much styled the same way as the white and red one I had worn to the club, I pulled it free of the rail gently removing the plastic cover so I could keep it for later. Having a rail out in the middle of the room may not be the cleanest solution but it appeared to be one I would need to live with for a while.

Feeling his eyes still upon me I chose not to look into the boxes labelled with a well known, even to me, lingerie store. Turning back around, catching his eyes on my butt, I stared waiting for him to move along but he made no move what so ever.

"I need to get dressed."

"Don't let me stop you. I'm quite curious as to what is hiding under that towel."

"I am a lady."

"Very well," he huffed moving away from the chair. "You will get over this human modesty Sookie. I only hope I'm around when you do." With one final leer he made to walk out the door.

"Eric," I cried out hoping to stop him. He turned back obviously expecting something. "Thank you." He nodded, his face still blank but I thought I saw a brief hint of disappointment. He continued out the door but didn't close it behind him. Not trusting him not come back on through whilst I was in the middle of changing I headed to the door the hanger still in my hand.

There was no lock on the door that I could see so I moved to the other side of the rail putting an obstacle between us both should he decide to come back. After rummaging through the box of lingerie I managed to find something that didn't look like dental floss though it was still a fair bit skimpier than anything I would have actually worn. The matching bra was a little better and having checked the size I dove back into the box. Every single bra was my size. How Eric had known that was beyond me and I was a little too embarrassed to really ask him. I wouldn't even know how to start a conversation like that. The only other person to ever buy my underwear was Gran and that was a decade ago.

Choosing to think about Eric and his talents another time I pulled them on and slipped into the dress. It was so soft and the lining felt so smooth against my bare skin. If everything was going to feel like this I could imagine getting lost in it all the time. I only managed to do part of the zip so I hoped Godric wouldn't mind zipping up the last bit.

Skimming the boxes I found a pair of heel that matched the dress. My first choice would have been something flat or pretty darn close to it but every box, boots included, had a high heel some even with a platform. Either Eric had a fetish or someone else did the shopping.

The shoes were a little high, just as high as the ones I had worn to the club. Knowing I had walked OK in them after I woke boosted my confidence a little but I still felt uneasy in them at first. A lifetime in flat sensible shoes did not make a glamazon it seems. They were open toe with a sling back and I thanked Tara for making me paint my nails or they could have looked ghastly.

There was no mirror in here so I could only hope I looked OK. My hair was mostly dry so I ran my fingers through it a few times glad to find no knots. Hopefully my natural waves would make my hair look pretty rather than 'I just couldn't be bothered'. I could only guess I had done OK with the way I looked by the fact both Godric and Eric stopped speaking and turned to stare at me.

Godric it seemed had also finished getting dressed, a white tailored shirt and smart shoes now completing his outfit. How he could look even better with clothes on was a baffling concept to me but it certainly seemed that way at least to me.

Remembering that I needed help I turned around moving my hair out of the way.

"Could," was all I managed to get out when a large hand moved a few more strands of my hair aside before pulling the zip up the last few inches.

"You look beautiful." was all the deep voice said against my ear and I felt a shiver run through me.

I closed my eyes willing away the feeling he created. How the two of them could get me so coiled up inside when they barely did anything was beyond me. I had never had this reaction to anyone in my life and here I was having it with two men, both of whom I had a connection with. Starting a mantra of 'it's just the blood' in my head I released my hair so it fell around my shoulders. Turning slowly I could feel how close Eric still was to me. His large body cast a shadow over all of me and even though there was a foot of space between us, his size made me feel like he was all around me. It made me think of last night and how I'd felt with his hands and mouth over me.

No one had kissed me like that, like they wanted to consume me. It had been even more glorious because I had heard nothing at all from him from the moment he touched me. Now I could hear something but it wasn't English at all. It was very similar to how Godric had spoken but there seemed to be some differences. If my darn disability was back again then I could pretty much kiss goodbye to any kind of intimacy. Just thinking of how strongly everything would come through when someone would grab me at the bar made me turn my head away from him. In turning away though I caught sight of where the woman had been.

She was gone as was the rug and the puddle and splashes that had been left behind.

"Who was she?" I asked willing my eyes to look away.

"Mercedes. She was a pet of Stan's." Godric explained. He had gone over all the terms to me but pet was one that I couldn't feel comfortable with. It provoked so much animosity within me to think of someone being treated that way. I vaguely knew who Stan was. I knew where he stood in regards to the vampire hierarchy and I could vaguely picture him from the people I saw as we passed through.

"How much trouble am I in?"

"None." You could have knocked me down with a feather. His words though few always seemed to carry weight and this time they got me to stop looking at that phantom puddle.

"But you said?" I thought back over everything he had told me. There was no way I wouldn't be punished for killing another's pet unless. "Godric?"

"With you being a new born I am responsible." I felt like my heart just plummeted into my stomach.

"She was here to kill me. What if she had, then what?" How my voice came out sounding so calm when inside I was practically hysterical. Everything was swirling inside of me faster than I could get a hold of.

"Do not think on it."

"I won't let you be punished for something I did." I tried to think of the punishments he had told me about. We'd skimmed over lots of it so that I wouldn't be overwhelmed with information in such a short time. The monetary one seemed the most likely. Anything else could weaken him in the eyes of the area. Like a light bulb it hit me.

"Stan won't do anything."

"What makes you believe that?" Eric asked from behind me. I spared him a glance finding him leaning against the wall next to the door frame. He looked like he was settling in for a show.

"Stan's a vampire. He loves control, loves power and if it looks like he can't control a human pet then it's a weakness. If he has one weakness then he's sure to have others. He might not hold much power in the hierarchy but he is within your inner circle. Any vampire with any kind of ambition or any that just want to get close to you will see that weakness and exploit it."

"Very good."

"Wait, what? I'm right?"

"Yes."

"Oh."

"This will not be something that is discussed."

"I understand." I barely wanted to talk about it now so I knew I definitely wouldn't want to talk about it when there were other ears around.


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N:**The last chapter was a long one. I didn't intend to have it turn out with that amount of words. I just kept writing and it just kept coming. This one seems to have done the same. Each time I've come to start writing I've gone back over what I have for the chapter so far. I always end up changing things or adding things and before I know it the time has gone. There goes the time I have to write and the chapter had barely moved.

Disclaimer: The only thing I own are the mistakes.

* * *

><p>-*-*-*-GODRIC-*-*-*-<p>

There was so much I had to say to her but none of it could be said here. There was a certain level of privacy but not enough for what I needed. I also needed to deal with Stan. Whether he was directly responsible for the woman's attack was still to be seen. It was clear he was playing foot loose and care free with his pets, a dangerous path to take when it involved the lives of the nest. Perhaps I had lived here too long, surrounded myself with fools and incompetence. I would not allow their ways to over shadow those I would teach. She would be better than all of us. I would see to that.

One thing was for certain, we would be leaving the nest and right away. My duties as Sheriff can be rearranged until I can take a leave of absence. The paperwork can be done from anywhere with the use of email. Phone calls also can be made to and from anywhere. I will reduce the meetings down as much as possible, handing to Isabel those that I can.

There is so much to be done. The sooner I get to the King the better. She must become my focus.

"I have one item on my agenda that I must see to, then we will be leaving." I said trying to stay as neutral as possible. I needed to keep everything locked down.

"Leaving?" She looked so human in her reaction. It would work for her and against her. She would blend in better keeping herself safe but our kind would see it as a weakness outside of mixed company.

"Yes. We will be leaving for one of my other houses in the area. I should have taken you there from the beginning. Remain here with Eric." I moved my attention from her to Eric speaking to him in Swedish. It was an old habit of ours but given how few people actually spoke the language outside of Sweden we were usually safe enough to use it.

"Do not let her out of your sight."

Leaving the room I keyed the door to lock behind me. Though Eric was with her I would take no chances. There were very few who could take Eric on. Irregardless of his age, his skill at fighting left most in awe. Those who faced him were usually ill informed or full of stupidity.

Walking down the stairs, through the hall way and in to the common area there was a sense of deja vu with each vampire offering a nod or another acknowledgement. I ignored them all. I was angry. Angry at myself for leaving her to rise alone, for not locking the door to the room behind me, for allowing behaviour like this to go on for so long. Angry at Stan for not controlling the humans he keeps as pets. Angry at that woman for whatever deluded thoughts of grandeur had seeped into her brain.

I had no proof that he had glamoured the girl into the task. Without the girl alive that was now gone, as were my chances of retribution at least officially. I would put fear into him and I would let him know if any pet of his stepped out of line again action would be taken.

Stan was stood at the chimney breast that divided the two halves of the room. To anyone else he would appear to be in some form of down time but I could see the twitch of his eyes as he watched the room. Otherwise he was very still. I am surprised that this is a skill he has yet to perfect but given how lazy he had become of late I should not have been surprised.

It was easy to catch his eye and have him follow me to my office. The soundproofed nature of the room would offer the privacy I needed for this. Neither of us would want this becoming common knowledge but it would also allow me to speak a little more freely.

I had barely reached my desk when the door clicked closed, his boot clad feet clumping on my floor. He was nothing if not a show man. I remained standing though there was no need. Stan may frequently use his size to intimidate people but his physical size means nothing against me. Seated or stood I could end him with barely any effort. I could be out of my seat before he even finished the thought of attacking.

I could see it in my mind. His face would twist in shock as I pulled his arm from its socket, the spray of blood decorating this cold, sterile room. I'd take his other arm before he had a chance to act. He would scream in pain and shock. I'd take my time on the rest, break bones before tearing parts away, all the while relishing in the hissing, spitting and screaming. I could almost feel the flesh give way under my fingertips, could feel the sticky smooth blood on my clothes, on my body and hair.

"You know why I wished to speak to you?'

"My pet is dead," he spat.

"One of your pets." He badly disguised his surprise that I would know such a thing. He is a fool to think I do not know of the ones he keeps away from the nest.

"She was a treasured pet," he insisted.

"She was won in a card game." I replied keeping as monotone a voice as possible as my mind replayed the image of tearing his arm off. I didn't approve of the way humans were used as chips in a game but I had to admit I had won a great deal of favours and land in the games. It also helped how loose tongued many became whilst playing unable to resist boasting of their most recent exploits.

"She was very talented," he smirks as though such information is not well known. Whilst I do not allow feeding or any sexual proclivities out in the open in this nest many do. Just because they are out of sight does not mean they are out of our hearing range whilst here, just as when pets are shared amongst them.

"What was her name?"

"Why does that make a difference?" His anger is beginning to brew now but it is no match for that which churns within me.

"What was her name?" At his silence I know his answer. He did not know because he did not care. "As I thought. Your pet is dead because she attacked my progeny. Whether she was glamoured to do it or not she is dead. Any more attempts on my childe's life and I will undoubtedly be having a different type of conversation with you." He remained silent his body frozen, unresponsive. There was no doubt he was thinking of the last time someone attempted to attack me. I had moved so quickly most had barely even saw me move before the fool exploded in a shower of blood.

"Will this go further?"

"If you would like something to be done I can pass it along to the Magister. He will ensure an unbiased opinion given the involvement of my childe."

"I will start on the paper work." He turned to leave offering me the weakest of bows. Though I am not big on grandeur I do demand respect for my position. This vampire was even more foolish than I thought.

"You should note that it will be taken into consideration that either she was glamoured to attack, in which case you are suspect, or she was barely glamoured at all, in which case you will be suspect. Either way the Magister is likely to fine you and remove your other pets into his custody. There will likely be a ban on your owning of a human for some time." I paused allowing my words to sink into his thick skull before continuing.

"I will email you all the necessary items you will need to make your claim with him. I shall prepare a written statement for both myself and my progeny." I could see him mentally deliberating the pros and cons of his situation as any good vampire would. He knew what his decision would be as did I. There was no way he would risk any kind of exposure. He was nothing if not egotistical.

"It seems as though since neither party was injured we should forget this happened. Pets are easy enough to come by after all." I nodded my agreement. He seemed to think this was reason enough for him to leave.

"Should any other incidents involving your pets arise any time in the future do know that I will give the harshest of punishments to them _and you_. Get them under control Stan unless you want to spend some quality time in the guest quarters." It did not escape me that my voice had deepened as I allowed a little of the monster within me to lay claim even if it was not the way it wished to. The shift in power and strength in the room was definitely noticed by Stan especially if the way his body stiffened, fingers curling as though preparing for an attack.

He bowed deeply, much deeper than was necessary in truth. It looked as though his offering of submission was painful and there was a little bit of pleasure in it. It would be so easy for me to snap him like a twig and the thought of doing it made a part of me rejoice. Doing so, as satisfying as it would be, would have consequences, ones that would have questions that would inevitably bring to light her severe weaknesses. I could not and would not allow that to happen.

I waved him away. Waiting until he left to take my seat at my desk I quickly pulled out and turned on the laptop I kept here. The sooner I did what I needed to the faster I could return to her. This was purely for area business. From here I would check in on the area's emails. Very little was stored on it and every time I used it I wiped it as clean as possible. There was no use in leaving a trail.

There were several that were merely check ins but there were some involving the police investigation surrounding Sookie's disappearance. If the investigation does not move along faster than it is now I will need to persuade a verdict. The longer this persists the longer my childe and I will be at risk. If she wasn't my childe I would have urged the maker to either end the childe or leave the area, if not the country. It was what used to be done. Now we are getting complacent, thinking our ways will not get us caught. I still will not leave.

The investigations into the murders in the North are enough to let me know, to let us all know, how precarious our lives truly are. There is no telling what would happen if one of us was discovered. With what little I knew of the media hungry ways of humans soon enough another human either within the public eye or not will do something to draw the eye away but until the cases in the north and her case are closed people will continue to look for answers.

The few reports that I had received stated several sources, both expert and otherwise, believed it unlikely that she had survived such an attack from the amount of blood at the scene. From the staff manager I had been able to discover they had searched through every part of the club and it's surrounding alleys as they had also searched a few of my nearby warehouses, thankfully without causing me any damage. Though one loyal staff member had passed along that they weren't solely looking for her alive anymore. Many truly believed she had perished and had been merely hidden in one of the dumpsters or somewhere else within close range. Whilst the thought of her body lifeless and mutilated sent a shiver through me, it was for the best if they believed this to be the truth and ruled as such. Perhaps I will need to _persuade_ all involved that there was no way for her to have survived without medical attention.

Checking the last few emails one of which was from Manuel's maker verifying that his progeny had in fact checked in with me, I left my emails and opened my calendar. Most of the meetings outside of the official ones were not kept here but kept within my mental vault but the visual layout often helped me plot and plan. Heading to the door I opened it searching the room for Isabel. She was sat again with her human Hugo. There was something about him that made me cautious. I was not truly comfortable with him being the pet of my second in command though she seemed to react whenever someone called him that. I was beginning to believe she was developing feelings for the human.

I moved back to my desk chair glancing a few weeks ahead. There was nothing official that I needed to be involved in outside of my monthly report. That was easily done from anywhere. I constantly gathered all the information I needed so as to make it as smooth as possible. This had come to be to my advantage when the reports of Russell's movements had circulated and much of my time had been spent conversing with sheriffs around the world. Had I not there would have been a great rush to have it all completed in just one evening.

Isabel silently entered the room softly closing the door behind her before taking the seat opposite me. She looked impeccable as always, her tailored white suit exuding power whilst still feminine. It was a throw back of her human days and the early days with her maker.

"You are leaving." It was not a question only an observation and I was reminded again why she had become an indispensable second to me.

"To another house only."

"You have only a few meetings over the next few weeks that I cannot take in your place."

"I am aware. There are several vampires that I require nightly check ins. You will be responsible for monitoring them. Should any new applications for residency arrive email them to me and I will respond as needed. I will be arranging to visit the King."

"Are you giving up your area?"

"No. I will merely take a vacation until things are more settled for her. I will not be far away should I be needed." There was a change on her face as she regarded me. "Is something wrong?"

"No sheriff," but there was still something there even as she widened her eyes and straightened her face further.

"If you do not feel comfortable running the area I will recommend Sheriff Harding cover this area and his own whilst I am away."

"I will be fine. I…." Her pause caused me some concern. "I believe this new childe will be good for you at least once the media aspect dies down." That explained the reaction. Though Isabel had yet to experience being a maker I knew she was always watching, waiting for 'the one'. It seemed comical that she shared such a thing with the humans.

"She seems to bring something into my life." I looked to the bond. I had turned down the bonds that I had with all my progeny as I worked to control my anger. Nora was a mix of calm and determination as she was most nights though the stretch I usually felt with her was not as far as it usually was. I could only determine the Authority had her travelling once again. Eric was cautious yet curious and Sookie was everything. There was anxiety, love, hate, anger and sadness. There was joy, fear, guilt, shame and contentment. Along side it there was a feeling, an ache, one I had not experienced before. It felt much like the stretch that I had when my progeny were away from me but still as a ball, a weight inside of me, something that shouldn't be but belonged all at once.

I watched mildly disconnected as Isabel left the room, the sound of her voice as she called Hugo to her moving through the open door, her voice becoming a muted whisper as it closed. Glancing at the time knowing the night was running short for Sookie I closed down the computer. Keeping an unhurried pace I moved back towards my suite to a chorus of Sheriff.

*-*-*SOOKIE*-*-*-

Godric left almost silently the small beep and click as the door's lock slid into place the only sound. I felt then heard Eric move behind me. From the corner of my eye I saw him move towards the bed seating himself high up so his back could rest agains the large headboard. He was watching me in the most laid back manner I had ever seen. He looked as though he didn't have a care in the world. If only I could feel that way.

"He's angry with me."

"He's not."

"I just killed someone in his home."

"You would rather she killed you." This was sounding a lot like the discussion I'd had with Godric.

"I would prefer if she hadn't tried to kill me in the first place."

"You will come to see that vampires will take any opportunity to weaken another if it's to their gain. Killing the childe of someone you wish to displace is ideal if you can make it so you are not to blame." How he could sit there so calm whilst revealing the most devastating of things was unreal to me.

"I'm his weakness." The thought was horrifying.

"Yes, as was Nora and as was I. We still could be but with our age very few could take us on and survive. You don't get as old as we are without learning a few tricks and that's before what Godric has taught us."

"I don't want to be his weakness. I don't want to be anyone's weakness."

"He will teach you everything he knows. You will learn it. You won't take risks or take chances but you will still be his weakness. It will take centuries before you will be strong enough to be on your own and even then you most likely won't want to be."

"When did he release you?" He looked startled at my question. Maybe it was because he didn't expect me to know about any of it or maybe it was because of how bluntly I had put it.

"Godric has never released me, neither has he released Nora." I stared wide eyed at him. How could that be? Both of them were so far away from Godric.

"Does that bother you?"

"I wouldn't have it any other way. He has never been a harsh maker. From what I am aware being released is like being hit in the chest with a sledge hammer. You will see." I rubbed my breast bone with the heal of my hand, the ache that I had begun to feel growing slightly. Maybe it was in my head, the thought of not being around him. How could I be so attached to him in such a short time? I barely knew him. I didn't even know his last name or if he even had one.I don't know what he likes, what he hates, what he believes in but I trust him, some part of me even loves him. Or something like love only deeper.

"I am not the person Gran raised." I flopped down onto the bottom of the bed my hands cradled loosely in my lap.

"No you are not and the sooner you realise that the better." I didn't even know I had said that out loud.

"The people, the house, the clothes." Now I started putting the words out it seemed they wouldn't stop.

"What's wrong with the clothing?"

"Nothing is wrong with them, they just cost so much. I know they did. Gran would be so angry at me for accepting that big of a gift." I got up from the edge of the bed and started pacing trying desperately not to start running my fingers through my hair.

"You are not in your world anymore. Those rules don't have any meaning here. All that matters is survival." Blowing out my cheeks I moved back to the bed sitting back down on it's edge. Covering my face with my hands I rubbed my face hard the friction oddly cathartic.

"How do you live like that?"

"You will adapt." he murmured tucking a piece of my hair behind my ear. I'd not even heard him move. There was that word again. Adapt. They made it sound so simple yet it seemed like one of the most hardest things. Everytime they said it I heard the unspoken or die.

"Did you ever think about when you were going to die?"

"I didn't know the when but I knew the where." I looked at him curious as to what his answer could be. How could you know where he would die? "I knew I would die in battle. I had been sworn to an oath that saw me face many battles. I knew even if the oath was fulfilled I would still be called upon to fight."

"Did you? Fulfill the oath?"

"No." There seemed to be more there but as curious as I was I wasn't sure if I should push. It was obvious he stilled carried this oath of his but what kind of oath could be carried for this length of time. Surely there was nothing he could do about it now.

"What about you? How would you die in your small town life?"

"I knew I only had a few years left with Gran, ten if I was lucky. Tara's anger would eclipse the size of the town and she would move away, build a real life for herself. Lafayette would find someone to balance out his crazy and be happy like he deserves. I would carry on working all my jobs and living in my house alone and I would die there alone. The last Stackhouse." That sounded even more depressing out loud as it did in my head.

"No young love left behind?"

"No. That was never in the cards for me."

"A pretty girl like you wouldn't be alone."

I looked away to the still covered windows desperately trying to swallow down the sadness his words produced.

"No, there was never anyone for me. It's hard for people to move away from pity."

I didn't feel all that comfortable anymore, not like I was when Godric was around. I knew I would have to learn to deal with it. He couldn't always be around me and from what he said unless I got on the wrong side of someone I was going to be around for a long time.

This was surely the longest I had been without something to do in years. If I wasn't at work I was getting ready for work or doing household chores. The only time I was ever really still was when I was asleep and even that time was limited when I worked at the bar beyond closing.

"Is there anything I could be doing? I'm not real good at just sitting around."

He gave me a look I couldn't read. His face moved faster than I could comprehend let along decipher each minute change barely acknowledge before it changed again.

"We will be leaving shortly. The house will have nothing for you there. We will need to pack all if your new clothing."

"Ok." I replied jumping up. I was more than glad to have something to do. If Godric thought I was going to spend my time sitting around twiddling my thumbs waiting for him he was sadly mistaken. That really would lead me to madness.

It wasn't til I was stood next the the rail that I remembered the sheer volume of things hanging on it.

"Um Eric? Is there anything for me to pack them into? I doubt we have a van lying around to just roll this in."

Eric sped passed me before returning back with what had to be the largest case I had ever seen. It was as tall as he was broad and then some. I still doubted most if it would fit.

"Can I do that?"

"Yes I have no intention of packing them for you."

"No the speeding around thing?' A single eyebrow raised at my question. "What?"

"Godric should have explained what our abilities are."

"Oh he did. The speed and the strength and the senses and the healing and the stamina aswell as the you know live forever thing."

"Then why did you ask?"

"I didn't think he meant like that. That was…"

"Impressive, spectacular?"

I shrugged not really sure how to describe what I saw or how it made me feel.

"This isn't going I fit everything."

"There are two garment bags for the dresses. The shoes may remain in their boxes. As can the lingerie." I closed my eyes waiting for the comment to come.

"Do you like the lingerie? Which set are you wearing?"

He was tilting his head this way and that as though he was trying to see through my clothes. There were pictures in his head of a few of the sets, each one more scandalous than anything I could ever imagine wearing. Some seemed to be just a few scraps of lace and elastic.

Shaking my head at him I pulled down a few if the t shirts and jeans gently laying them into the case still within their plastic. I had no clue where we were going so I didn't want to take any chances with removing any of it. After they were all in I opted to put in the cardigans since it would be easy to get the wrinkles out. There was a pure white one with mother of pearl buttons with a lace edged collar that was absolutely beautiful and so soft even through the plastic. I may have placed that a little more delicately than the others.

"Godric will be done shortly with his meeting." Feeling a little but of a panic I quickly pulled off the last few hangers that I thought would be best in the case quickly putting them in and sealing the case. Moving as fast as I could I put all the dresses into one garment bag with a few skirts and shirts going into another with the few jackets that were there. Dropping a box of lingerie into each I zipped them up closed before turning to check I hadn't missed anything. I almost flew out if my skin when I saw Godric waiting beside the rail, Eric and the suit case no where in sight.

"You scared me."

"I apologise," he said but there was a crease in his brow one that wasn't there before.

"Is everything alright? Did your meeting go ok?" I asked stepping away from the rail. I only took a few steps and though there was still a distance between us I felt so much closer to him.

"We have much to discuss this evening." Eric sped passed me disappearing through the door with a few boxes of shoes.

"Ok. Is there anything you need to take?"

"No I have everything I need in the car already."

I nodded grabbing one of the garment bags just before Eric appeared then disappeared with the other and the last of the boxes.

Following Godric down the steps I paid close attention to where my feet were going. I may have kept my balance surprisingly well so far in the heels but I was taking no chances in the stairs.

The stairs led to a short hallway that opened up into the middle of the main living area with the other end leading to the far end and one of the doors leading to the garden.

The room wasn't as full as last time I had walked through here but there were still a few vampires and humans alike. One in particularly sat much straighter with an unhealthly gleam in his eyes as I walked in behind Godric. His mind was bouncing between English and Spanish with a few naked images of me and himself. None of it was too pleasant and none of it too polite though from what I could gather with the limited amount that I could understand it was meant to be complimentary. It wasn't anything that I hadn't come across before.

He seemed awfully interested in my butt and when I mentally sighed over his wishing that if he verbalised his compliments Godric would allow him my company for an evening I saw Godric's spine straighten and his shoulders harden. I wasn't too sure why that had happened but his steps never falter and other than the minor changes his demeanour didn't seem to change.

As we rounded the chimney breast I heard the TV in the other room and spared a peak only to find my own face staring back at me from the huge screen. My feet paused. The image was from the car ride over here. Tara had taken it as we left on an old camera. She must have had the film developed. The picture changed to a well groomed brunette with big eyes before cutting to what was obviously an interview made earlier in the day. A slim, well dressed blond was stood with my childhood friends outside what looked like the hotel we were staying in.

**"The young woman who went missing three nights ago was apparently a hard working, family orientated young woman. We spoke to her friends, who were also on the trip with her, about the speculation that she could have just runaway."**

**"Nah Sook would never do that. She loves her Gran with every beat of her heart. She's all she has left of her family. Her Gran depends on her but she depends on her Gran too. She's the reason she gets out of bed every morning."**

**"If she had run away where did all her blood come from. The police said she has to have been hurt bad for that amount of blood. An' all her stuff was just lying around like someone had gone through it all."**

**"Could anyone be set out to hurt her? Any enemies?"**

**"No one could hate that girl. She works three jobs, helps out anyone she can and she still smiles like the sun never stops shining. She don't hate nobody, she's never nasty, never has a bad word to say. She respects everyone even when sometimes they don't deserve it."**

**"Is there anything you would like to say to the public?"**

**"Yeah. If you've seen her or think it could have been her or even anything that looks bad, call the number, tell the police, help us find her. She's like our sister, she's our rock and we need her, her Gran needs her, so please help. We are gonna be out on the streets looking for her and if you can hear this Sookie, stay strong. We will find you, we will find you and we will take you home. We don't need no more stories baby girl."**

My heart was breaking all over again and it was a harsh fight to stop the tears that wanted to fall. I knew they wouldn't leave without a fight. I knew they would drive themselves to ruin trying to find out what happened to me. I couldn't let what happened to me destroy their lives too.

I turned away from the screen heading towards the door where my maker was waiting for me.


	13. Chapter 13

*-*-*GODRIC*-*-*-

She was silent in the car as she had been since she had turned away from the television screen. Now she was staring out of the window, much as she had when she had first risen. Time may have little meaning to those awarded immortality but it felt as though these last few nights had been longer than the last month.

I knew the hearing of any of the news broadcasts would affect her. I had not however expected them to have interviewed the friends. This clearly was an error on my part. I should have had more understanding of how the humans would have reacted to such a tragically perceived incident. If they knew the truth of how brutal an end she would have met had I not intervened, of how her life would have ended had I not chosen to give her my own blood and take her with me I believe this could have been much worse for my kind. There was hope that once we were secluded things would become easier. There was less chance of interference from other vampires and I could keep her away from the majority of the happenings surrounding her human life.

I was grateful that Eric chose to drive us again. Though I was capable of completing several tasks simultaneously I was still angry and much too preoccupied with her to give the road the attention it required. It may have been a task that he had taken upon himself but I knew I could not allow it to continue. I would send him on his way, allowing him to have some time to himself whilst I settle matters with Sookie. There is no need for him to miss out on Dallas and it's surrounding area now the threat has been eliminated. He will soon return to his area and his obligations. I will have to make time so that we may be together before he returns. Though the distance is not great between us, being in two different kingdoms has a negative effect upon our interactions at times. Though my own King would never question my loyalties I could not say the same for Eric's queen. I would not put Eric's life at risk for naught.

Returning my attention to Sookie I chose to examine the bond. Sookie is, as I would expect from someone like her, a tangle of emotions. There is sadness and guilt no doubt over having seen her friends on the television, anxiety and a nervous feeling that I can only guess is from our change in location. I have felt no tension between the two of them during their time alone though I know Eric will have been his usual self. The way she reacts to his usual cold front and his flirtatious banter will lay the foundation of their relationship. I know he finds her attractive. I am unsure of anyone who would think otherwise though I may be biased. He will undoubtedly attempt to bed her as he does the majority of women that come his way. Though there is only time for her to come to understand his unique brand of charm I do hope I am there the first time she tells him no. That is something I have never seen before.

Like many of my homes across the world Eric knows how to get to this one without my assistance. It is only on very rare occasions when the local human authorities have changed roads or other layouts that we need to change to the use of a GPS system. That could be the modern technological device or what Pamela refers to as the local human she has glamoured to do the driving for her.

The house was as non descript as they could come in these cookie cutter estates. Aside from one other maker and Childe there were no other vampires in this estate let alone this area. Both of us had bought plots when the area was being built and had everything done to our specification. It is risky at times but it is one of the best ways to get exactly what we need done from the ground up.

Like every other house here the house has four bedrooms split over two floors with the off white exterior contrasting with the dark wood panelling mirrored through the interior of the house. Of course where every other household had used their basement as media and games rooms even gyms I had it worked into a light tight suite capable of entertaining both myself and my progenies. According to the work crew it was an empty space with a little shelving storage at one end. You can never be too careful.

The back of the property featured a large open grassed area with large evergreen trees creating a border along the perimeter stopping prying eyes. I was not the only one to do this but I was the only one to bring in a mix of both mature trees and saplings providing instant cover. I may have more time on this plane than the neighbours but it was a luxury I did not want to over use.

This large space and the privacy it offered will be ideal for when we take on the more physical aspects of her teaching. Given the already violent start to her new life I may need to begin the physical aspect a little earlier than intended. With having taught her the basic fundamentals in vampire protocol I would only need to deepen the knowledge over time. She knew of our hierarchy, our laws in their most basic form and of the gifts awarded her by being of my bloodline. If she has the memory so afforded to our line there will be no need to repeat any of it. This way when I am required to be at meetings and she is around other vampires I can have the knowledge that she can not only be aware of her standing but also defend herself enough to get away from older vampires should any one attempt to take advantage of our short term separation. She is unfortunately the youngest vampire in the area by some margin. The only other vampire I know of that is less than a century still has forty seven years on her. Whilst still a significant difference between that of a newborn Sookie's apparent weakness would make this more pronounced. It would be as though she was facing someone twice if not three times their age.

I had born witness to both her strength and her speed both of which had been displayed primarily for my progeny. This did not please me. She was my childe yet he was the one experiencing her new self. Now that I am further away from my duties and once I am free for a short time I hope to be the one to experience them with her.

The strength of the hits she had given Eric I would not judge. They had been with grief not malice and it would have taken much more than a newborn's strength to truly move him. The speed however I could judge. She was fast, much faster than her human self could have ever been but she was not at the speed I would have hoped for her. If these were the limits that had been put against my youngest childe I would need to keep her with me for most if not all of her life. I would allow her freedom to come and go as she pleased but I could never truly have her leave the kingdom if not my area. Should she wish to leave the kingdom I would take it into consideration. I would have to take her to see the world. It would be such a delight to see it through her fresh, untainted eyes.

Eric took us through the security gate with ease. The security fob contained a code unique to us. Whilst I do not use the house often I would at times send my day man in to do something or collect something primarily to ensure no questions were being asked about a barely lived in house. Eric remained silent as he drove us smoothly through the pristine road passed the uncluttered, carefully maintained gardens of the other occupants of the estate. I paid the nominal fee for the estate's gardening crew to maintain the front yard to the letter of the agreement I was forced to sign upon purchasing. It is kept perfectly in code; never too slacking on the regulations but never too outstanding as to garner any attention. It is a careful balance.

As we came down the short drive towards the house Eric moved off to the right following the drive around to the side of the house and to the garage. There was room here for one other car. Typically it would have been a generic brand car but there are several motorcycles in it's place. One of the outbuildings does have a car in it, one Eric refers to by a different name each time he comes to this house and sees it. The most polite had been rust bucket.

Unlike the last two journeys we have made in a car Sookie is out almost as soon as he engine is turned off. I am not sure if she has seen the outside of the house as we drove up but she moves to the boot of the car and begins pulling out the case and garment bags. Exiting the car I take the case from her easily slipping the weight from her fingers. There is a little sense of irritation in the bond but once I place one of the garment bags into her hands it dissolves away. It seems my newest childe is feeling restless already. I can only imagine how doing so very little over the last few nights, even before that fateful night, has come to affect her when she would normally jump from one job to the next.

Using the garage's door to access the house I am happy to see the door is locked. Thankfully I have the key with me. Though it hasn't been some time, I have had to break into my own residences from time to time. It is why there are keys hidden throughout different properties. There are several new locking mechanisms that I wish to use on all of my houses most similar to the ones I use on my resting place in the nest. I have not however taken the time to do so. Now maybe a good time to set into motion.

With the door unlocked and Sookie and Eric at my heels I enter the house. This door leads to a small laundry room slash mud room which I skip entirely opening the other door that leads straight into the lavish kitchen. Whilst I may not have much use for it outside of occasionally heating up a bag of blood it does make more sense should I wish to sell the house at any time. With humans being the most likely to purchase it I have to think of the market.

We are all silent as we move through the kitchen and into the living area. Even Sookie in her heels makes no noise on the hard wood floor. Most of this area is as open plan as I could make it. There are two large pillars between the kitchen and the living area with the only wall separating the living area from the office and a small bedroom. The bedroom would have been larger but I used some of it's not needed space and a small amount from the office to create a small space. The space was walled off from the bedroom with access purely from the side of the office by a set of large double doors. They led to my book collection or at least part of it. Almost every home had one of some sort.

Moving in our little formation to the office I basked in the awe that flooded the bond. Her head had barely stayed still as she took in her new surroundings. Whilst not the most extravagant out of all of my homes this one is still impressive. Out of all of them this was always more of a home than just a residence though I had never vocalised that thought.

"You are free to use the house as you please. The television gets a number of channels and there is an Internet connection if you would wish to use it. I will need to get you a laptop but for now you may use mine. None of the upstairs is light tight,"

"Not that it matters where you're concerned," Eric interrupted.

I didn't need to turn to see her face to know that she had taken the comment to heart. The bond which had been so light with her excitement and awe had turned darker. I could not allow that to remain. Her joy had been quite pleasant to experience. I continued on as though Eric had never spoken.

"Though there is a security team that monitors the estate there is also a substantial security system installed within the house and another within our rest in place. This is one of the safest places for us to rest. I will however remain with you until you awaken. It will give us the greatest use of time."

Her eyes danced to mine a quick tipping of her chin an acknowledgement of her understanding how little time she was awake. I had hoped she had noticed it for herself. It would not be something I would want to have to discuss with her. Although it would be only one more item on an ever expanding itinerary it would appear to be another slight against her when it would come on the back of her so far limited abilities.

"The stairs in the living area lead to the two guest rooms and the master suite upstairs but the light tight suite is through a door in the pantry. Come. We will store away your things. There are few hours remaining and we have much to fill it with."

-*-*-*-SOOKIE-*-*-*-

Turning with him as he moved back towards the kitchen I found my eyes still moving around almost constantly. This house was so beautiful. It felt like a more modern and more expensive version of the farmhouse. Though the layout was nothing alike it felt like a home, some place not just ready to live in but actually lived in. There were little things here and there that didn't look like something picked up in a store just because of the look. And the wood was so beautiful and so well cared for from the floor to the furniture accents. It made the house smell amazing. There were no harsh cleaning smells or fake scents. It was just clean.

The door didn't seem to be much more than a regular wooden door in the back of the pantry but once it moved aside I could see another just a few steps down. Though there was very little light I could see a metal coating on the door very easily. The fact Godric touched it as it opened made me believe it wasn't silver but I was still curious.

"It is a reinforced steel door with silver dust coated iron core." I looked behind me to Eric. What he said slowly sank in. The door was still silver but it didn't seem to harm Godric at all. "A supernatural attempting to break down the door would come into contact with either the silver or the iron. One of which is deadly or dangerous to almost all species. It doesn't harm us now but if you were to stand holding the door for a great length of time it would begin to sap your strength." I nodded my understanding and though I knew the door would not directly harm me I kept my distance. It wasn't that I didn't trust Eric was telling the truth I just didn't want to experience anything kind of reaction having seen just what silver could do.

The few stairs that led down were surprisingly steep. I found my hand reaching out for the wall a time or two as the almost vertical stairs made me question my balance so when we reached the bottom and yet another door, this one thankfully open, I felt very grateful for flat even surfaces.

Down here the whole room seemed to be a reflection of upstairs. The dark wood was still in play with the cool soft creams mirrored on the walls and the soft furnishings though there was a darker chocolate brown toned chaise longue just under one wall. There was some art and more then a few books all of which look older than anything I had ever been able to have my hands on. Though the ceiling was lower like you would expect in a basement it was still significantly higher than I would have thought possible.

Though there were several chairs and sofas there was no sign of a bed or anywhere to sleep. Turning to see the wall we had come through I spotted the bed tucked away in a large inset space to the right of the door. It was huge, almost as big as the one at the nest and the end was covered in richly coloured fur.

"There is a bathroom through the door to your left. It has a large tub and a separate shower."

"Will we be staying here from now on?"

"For some time though not for too long. As I have said remaining in one place for a long period of time is not advisable however this house will suit our needs for a short time." I let my eyes drift away from him back to the seating area and the small faux fire set in the furthest wall. "We should talk now." I nodded following the arm he had outstretched. I barely registered Eric leaving. Heading to the furthest chair I sat down gently straightening out my skirt and folding my hands in my lap before looking up to him. His face was relatively blank except for the slight twitch at the side of his mouth as he watched me straighten in my seat.

"There is so much for us to discuss. Perhaps we should start with your telepathy?" I nodded trying desperately not to fidget. Even though his gaze was neither intimidating nor weighty I still felt the need to shift around. This wasn't a subject I was all to comfortable talking about. The people who knew just knew. It was never really something that required a heavy amount of discussion. "Have you always had such a gift?"

I held in my snort but my face must have given me away as his eye brow twitched.

"I've had it for as long as I can remember. My earliest memories are tainted with it. The only time I have been without it was when I woke up in the grave you dug. It was just gone. My head was empty of everything but what I thought. I thought that maybe I could be normal."

"How does it sound to you?"

"That depends."

"On what?"

"How I am, how many people are around, on how they feel?"

"Can you hear them constantly?"

"At first. Gran tried to help me tried to help me develop ways of blocking it out but they didn't work too well. I would build my room in my head but it could only hold for so long. When I would start to build up my shields I would sometimes still start from there but I'd make the walls with bricks instead of wood.

"It sounds..." He looked like didn't know how to end it.

"Exhausting? It was. It was like holding a book out in front of you while going about the rest of your day or listening to dozens of different radios and television sets all at the same time all on high volume." The memory of that exhaustion seeped into the bond and into my bones.

"Can you hear other vampires?" Hesitantly I nodded and his face locked up fast and tight. "We will keep this between us. Speak of it to no one not even Eric."

"Does anyone else in your family have this gift?"

"No. There's only me."

"There are no other gifts?"

"No. My Gran said my Grandfather knew things sometimes. Like he knew when his brother was trying to hurt himself and managed to put a stop to it. I'm not sure how he knew though she never said. Do you know where they come from?"

"Given the way you reacted when you ingested my blood there may be Fae in your bloodline."

"Fae? As in fairies?"

"They are not how they are made out to be in fairytales but yes. They are magical beings that live predominantly on another plane but a few still remain here."

"And you think an ancestor of mine was one?"

"It is a possibility. The Fae become highly intoxicated if they ingest our blood. It would explain how you acted with myself and Eric." I wanted to dig a hole and bury myself in it. I had thought that we wouldn't speak of that night ever. The whole thing had me tied. I had thoroughly enjoyed every moment that I had spent exploring the two of them but the fact that I had done it was mortifying. I seemed to lose all control and just went for what I wanted which is so not me and how I was raised. I am above that, I am better than that. That is how the girls in my town acted, throwing themselves at anything waiting for one that stuck.

"About that..."

"There is nothing to say. You are new. You have not yet come to understand your new body and it's lower inhibitions. With the addition of the intoxication I believe you simply lost control. That feeling bled into me through our bond and from there into Eric. Neither of us disliked what happened but we are unsure as to how you feel about the entire situation. If it is something that we need to discuss with Eric I can bring him back."

"No!" I all but shouted. "No that's fine. I...I don't know how I feel about what happened. It felt right at the time but I don't know if that was me or new me or now if it was just because I'd had your blood."

"It would not force you into anything you did not want. It has only the ability to make things more."

"Is that why if felt so good?"

"In part. The loop that was created fed our enjoyment from one to the next. It intensified everything." That would explain why everything felt more and how I became more desperate for their touch. The whole night was an ever expanding tangle of exquisite euphoria and the thought that maybe it would feel like that now if I touched him. I shook that thought away. It was something I didn't dwell on too much. To think on it would lead me to thinking on what came next.

"Are you angry with me?" I asked my mouth getting away from me before my mind had the chance to shut it down.

"You had no control over what happened that night. No one least of all yourself could have known what would happen from my feeding you more of my blood."

"No. Um I mean for the woman."

"No. I'm angry with myself." I couldn't understand why he would be angry with anyone but me. I attacked and killed a person in his home, someone who by vampire law belonged to some one else.

"You did not rise as the sun set. I waited but I chose to conduct my meetings. I believed you could have used the time to reflect on the happenings of night before. Instead my leaving you left you vulnerable."

"You couldn't have known. That was your home. No one thinks they can't be safe at home."

"We are vampire. We must always be on guard. You are an easy way for an enemy to get to me. An attack on you is an attack me."

"But you said nothing could be done."

"Nothing will. I will be taking more precautions however. I believe I have become more lax in recent years. My age has given me some security."

"Because you're stronger, faster?"

"I am no longer alone however. You do not have the advantages that I do." I sat up straighter. He may not have meant it as a slight against me but it did feel like one. What he said was true. I would never be a match for him, never physically and it was highly unlikely mentally.

"What can I do? I asked knowing it would be very little.

"Follow what I say. I only ask of you what I would ask of any of my progeny. You will have freedom."

"I can do that."

"Good. There is one more thing we must discuss. You will need a new identity. It must be done but you will choose your new name." I knew my face was locked in shock. Of all the things he could have possibly have said that was one that I did not see coming.

"Do I have to decide right now?" The thought of having to pick something that I would be stuck with from now on right this second was harrowing. What if I hated it a year from now? Would I still have to live with it?

"I can give you until the end of the night but I need to get your new identity started. The faster I have it completed the more protection you have if the police or anyone else starts digging. You are beautiful, you will attract attention. Having different papers allows for deniability. If I could bear it I would have you change your appearance." The way his eyes softened the longer he looked over me made me feel both shy and loved.

Though people had thought that I was pretty, I had heard numerous compliments about certain parts of my anatomy more than anything, no one aside from my Gran and my friends had ever said it out loud. No one else knew for definite about my gift but that didn't stop the whispers. Here was someone who knew what I could do, knew how that made me different yet still thought I was beautiful and had no trouble saying it out loud.

I smiled at him. It was the only response I could think to give him and it only grew when I saw him smile back at me.

* * *

><p>AN: The one thing I always worry about is whether the story is becoming too predictable. If you can see a plot point coming from a mile away you can pretty much guess what is going to happen in the rest of the story. From the moment Godric turned Sookie I have worried that I either wasn't moving the story along fast enough or I wasn't writing the chapters long enough to even make it look like it was moving forward at a steady pace. I haven't come across a story like this before (if anyone knows of one please let me know). I know of those that take place somewhere within the True Blood story line and then cut away. With those you have the 'backstory' so to speak already there in front of you. You know it because you have watched it.

I didn't want that with this.

I needed to show you how closed off and how routine based Sookie's life was. I needed to show how much she had truly lost before she then lost her life. I had to try to take Sookie down to ground level so that she could rebuild herself in her vampire life and set about making a life. She didn't have that before.

If I'm taking too long with that then I'm sorry. I will however continue on with how I have planned to write this story. If people stop reading that's their choice, just like it is my choice to write keeping the story at my own pace. I can admit that this is taking a little longer than I had expected. I am not as far along in the storyline as I expected to be at this chapter number but I am happier with the way the story sounds now than when I first wrote it.

More will come.


	14. Chapter 14

A/N: There will be a mention for Gran in the near future. Don't worry I haven't completely forgotten about her. The details around it all are something that will become part of a revelation between these beautiful characters.

So my New year's resolution whilst got off to an early start stuttered and failed. Within 24 hours I had one member of the family end up in ICU and another pass away. I did do around two thousand words when I needed a distraction but it sadly hit the back burner whilst I dealt with trying to establish a back to school routine and visit family. When life finally settled down I found the mojo for this story was almost completely gone. I'm hoping to get back into the swing of it soon though. i have written multiple paragraphs for this chapter that have found themselves in the trash because they didn't sound like Sookie and Godric. Hopefully I have managed to capture their voices once again.

* * *

><p>After choosing my new name I had begun to feel strange. It felt like something was pulling at me, a lethargy settling into me that hadn't been present since I had left Bon Temps. It felt as though a great weight settled in my chest pulling me down into the ground. Every limb was difficult to move the effort so great I just wanted to lay back in the chair, to just give in to the urge to rest. Godric had explained to me about the pull of the sun and how extreme it was for younger vampires. I never imagined anything could feel like it though. The clock in the corner told me there was still some time before dawn. His admittance that he didn't understand it either didn't help how confused I felt.<p>

With his help I managed to make it to the bed but that is where everything stopped.

When I came awake I felt a presence beside me but the jumbled up foreign language that I could make out from his head along with the warmth inside of me told me it was Godric. Eric was here somewhere the words in his head quieter than usual. He was further away but I knew he was still in the same room as us. I remained as still as I could resisting the urge to breathe even though I had no need. Godric told me that though the part of my brain that controlled automatic responses like breathing no longer existed inside of me I found myself still drawing in breath as though I needed it.

It was remarkably easy to remain still though it was a strange concept to wake and not instantly roll out of the bed to try and rush to be ready for my next shift. Stopping my thoughts from straying and taking me down painful roads I could no longer walk I chose to try something. My hearing had been very sensitive when I first woke but since I'd had my telepathy return I had seen it diminish. I tried to focus hoping to see if there was a link between my protecting my mind and my hearing loss. Slowly lowering my mental shields I found my hearing becoming sharper.

I could make out the faint rustle of pages being turned from the other side of the room. There was a steady drip drip from one of the taps upstairs. Something was skittering along the paved areas of the garden, the sound changing as the creature moved to the grass. A child in the house on one side was murmuring in his sleep, his mother humming a lullaby. I could hear the water moving in the pipes in that house and the next. The faint hum of electronics, the whisper of a voice as they read from a book the words as clear as they would be were they sat beside me. House to house to house until I could hear the mutterings of the guard at the gate as he watched a sport commentary show of some sort. He wasn't as clear as the others and I could only guess that was due to the distance. I wasn't sure how far away he was from us but I knew it was significant. It seemed I had reached my limit.

Though tempted to test out the boundaries of my telepathy the brief flash of a question from Godric had me pull back to myself.

Godric was still beside though I could tell that he had shifted and was now laid beside me where before he had been sitting upright resting against the head board.

"Chaise longue."

"Very good."

I opened my eyes to find his smiling eyes. Just two words and a smile and I felt like I was lit up from the inside. I sat up pulling myself to rest against the headboard never taking my eyes from Godric. It seemed as though I had gone to rest in one of Godric's shirts again. I would need to stop soon or there was a chance he would run out of things to wear. The light sheet that had been draped over me bunched up at my waist hiding my bare legs from view. From here I could see that Eric was fully dressed, his dark jeans and shirt seeming to be his only wardrobe choice though at the moment the shirt was open revealing a black tank. He was lounging in the chaise longue an old looking book in his lap. Godric it seemed had not dressed yet. The shirt I was currently wearing looked to have come straight from his back, the tattoos I had admired before glowing in the low light.

"You will feed tonight. I will be there and will stop you from harming anyone. Whilst you may have stopped yourself the first time I am unsure if you are able to do so again. You must never ignore your hunger. It would be very dangerous for you to do so."

"I understand. It may take some getting used to though." Seeing the curiosity in his eyes I continued all too aware of the ears I knew would be listening on the other side of the room. "There were times growing up when Gran and I would skip meals. Money has always been tight and on occasion I would go without so that Gran could eat. With all the jobs I had it was easy to just keep going and work through my breaks. I've gone a day or two without eating before and even longer on just one meal a day. I'm pretty much used to always having some level of hunger."

"It would be best for you to never attempt to do such a thing now. Your basic instinct will take over and you will kill someone. Once you are older you will need less blood. I need very little in order to survive. It would take a great deal of time before my basic urges could take over. Come. Eric has acquired two humans for us." In one smooth move he slipped from the bed silently moving around it to my side. Peaking around him I saw the blur that I knew to be Eric disappear up the stairs.

Taking Godric's hand I slipped from the bed, the soft sheets tickling my thighs. Following him up the stairs I could make out the steady beat of two hearts. As we reached the top of the stairs the thump was almost deafening. With an audible click I felt my fangs run down. Godric's pace was suddenly too slow but when I tried to step away to reach that glorious sound I couldn't. I tried to pull my hand free but his hand held true to my own. Turning back to him the burn at the back of my throat almost as intense as the ache I could feel growing in my belly I wanted to speak, to scream and protest but he held fast.

Pulling me away from where the kitchen became the living room Godric lead me to the furthest point of the kitchen. Here a large double door fridge was tucked in to the corner and without looking he reached inside pulling out a pouch. It was only as I examined it closely as he placed it into the microwave that I realised it was an I.V. bag filled with blood. I could still hear the heart beats beating steady in the other room even as I watched the bag turn as the machine hummed.

It was only feeling the tug at my hand as the appliance let out it's shrill beep that I realised I had begun walking across the room. The sound of the heart beats was drawing me across the room. Just the mere sound made my teeth ache. My fangs. I had fangs.

Feeling something warm placed into my free hand I was drawn by the sweet smell to a mug. I drank the first mouthful feeling slightly unnerved my the novelty Texas mug. Once the taste hit my tongue I could barely hold back from guzzling it down as fast as possible. It tasted heavenly though not as good as I'd had direct from the source. There was an after taste, something that lingered on my tongue long after the last of the blood was gone from the mug.

"The taste is due to the packaging. The storing of the blood, though it does nothing to lose its value, does leave behind a slight something. It is neither pleasant nor unpleasant just a side effect. Over time you will barely notice it though I have discovered that the longer the blood remains within the packaging the more acute the taste. It is usually freshly drawn that day." It was as though he had read my thoughts not the other way around. "You seem to have gathered yourself once more. Shall we?" Nodding I moved towards the sink intent on cleaning the mug before the red stained the insides but he slipped the porcelain from my fingers sitting it silently on the counter top.

Almost in sync we turned walking into the living room. Though his hand still held on to mine it wasn't gripped like it had been before. Now it was only a gentle guide moving towards a learning step in my new life. As I drew closer to the humans, the closest I had been since killing one, I felt as though my heart should be racing within my chest. Instead it was the warm space I thought of as the bond I held with my maker that was almost vibrating.

The itch was still there in my teeth and a faint echo of an urge to cut into their flesh and devour the red nectar beneath had begun at my core. This I knew must be what Godric had said was my baser instinct. There was blood and I wanted it. Though the faint smell of the blood he had heated for me still lingered in the air it did not drive me to want to rush across the small space that remained between us and drink. I could see the faint twitch of their pulse under their skin but I could wait.

I had to trust that Godric would not allow me to hurt them.


	15. Chapter 15

I could feel the hunger that still lingered within her. Though she was more in control than she had been only moments before I could still feel the primal urge to feed.

I watched her carefully as we moved deeper into the room. Her eyes were locked upon the two humans Eric had acquired for us. I had wanted to hunt for them myself. Eric was more than capable of watching over her as she was down. My home had more than enough security that I could have left her alone without any harm coming to her. I did not however wish to leave her.

She was physically weaker due to both her age and her apparent short comings. As she had laid in the bed wrapped up in another of my shirts she had looked innocent. Even at rest Eric and Nora never truly looked innocent. They looked young, perfectly preserved as they laid still but never with a hint of naiveté or innocence as she did. I doubted that I would look innocent whilst at rest. Even being dead for the day the transgressions of my early years would surely present themselves.

Eric had made himself physically scarce but I could feel him on the outside of the house likely laid out on one of the chairs. He did have a certain affection for those chairs. With just the two of us within the house I could give her all of my attention.

Still holding her hand I stopped only a few steps away from the first man. He was a good looking man dressed in moderately expensive clothing. It was clear he took care of himself which I could only assume would correlate into his health. There were no outward signs that would cause me any concern. While she had fed before both times had been on instinct. I needed her to be constantly aware of every step. The more control she had the better she would feed both now as a newborn and later. Good habits now would mean a longer, better future for her.

I glanced at the other. Physically her was similar to the first; same build, same dark hair, same moderately priced clothing. This one did have signs of strain likely stress induced. The faints circles around his eyes and the bloodshot whites indicated a lack of sleep and the chewed down thumbnails were signs of stress. Given Eric obtained them within a business district hours after a normal work day ended it was of no surprise. I would have to ensure she was careful with the amount of blood she took from him. Whilst a human ailment such as fluenza and any virus had no affect upon us they would leave him more weak as opposed to his friend.

Leading her to the sofa I encouraged her to sit to one side of the second man. With a slight snick I dropped my fangs. Whilst I would guide her as she drank I would give her a demonstration of what I needed her to do first.

"Watch me," I said softly before tilting the man's head to the side and then back. This would give her the perfect view to everything I did. Cradling the back of his head in the palm of my hand I found the main artery easily pushing my fangs through the flesh before pulling back. The blood barely touched my tongue before I pulled away leaving the punctures I had made. This would be the easiest way to get her a feed quickly. She was showing good control so far but I did not wish to test slight marks would be a good guide for her for this first time.

Sliding a little away from him I offered her my hand. With her eyes locked to the still bloody marks on the man's neck she rose from her seat slipping into the space between us. Moving her hair over her shoulder letting the smooth strands slip through my fingers I watched her carefully. She was panting fighting with herself. Bringing my body closer, letting the minute space between us disappear, I let my own calm bleed through into her. I could see the effect it had. The breath she didn't need evened out.

"Close your mouth over the bite. Let the blood fill your mouth. His body will provide for you. There is no need to rush." I murmured allowing my words to enter her through our contact as much through sound.

She was confident as she moved forward her mouth closing over the wound. Touching her so closely I could feel the purr as it emanated from her chest. I let his heart beat once after she swallowed before I began coaxing her away.

"That is enough. Too much and he will weaken too far." It seemed as though she couldn't hear me. Pushing back the few strands of her hair that had fallen forward I brought my mouth to her ear. "It is time to stop." With a little more command in my voice I was happy to see her disengage. Her head fell back resting upon my shoulder. Her mouth was open her fangs still down covered with a sheen of red. There was a slight drop of blood gathered at the dye of her mouth. I had an urge to lean forward, to lick it away but I did not. Instead I watched her gather herself. Inside she was a torrent of emotions each one as fleeting as the next.

"You will have the next one to yourself." Under normal circumstances I would have ordered the two men to simply swap places. With their glamour as heavy as it was they would do anything they are told remain in any position they are placed until told otherwise. The other man however was sitting in a better position for me to monitor her actions. I could do it from where we are now but with the two of us touching I was becoming distracted. This was not a time to let small details enrapture me when I had her faith and trust. I had told her I would not let her kill. I would uphold that.

Remaining where I was I caught her eye tipping my head over to the other man. I could sense the reluctance for her to leave me side though she did rise.

_I will be right here with you._

My thought must have given her some sense of confidence as she began to move. There was little space at the man's side so she perched herself on the arm of the sofa. It looked to be better for her. She was at a better height for him. There would be no need for her to reach up for her target.

Like I had done she tilted his head back. Her hand was on the far side of his head but her hands were beginning to curl into claws. The pressure from her nails was clear though she hadn't exerted enough force to bruise let alone break the skin. She leaned in stopping barely a breath away from his skin. Whether the twitch of her head was from her smelling him or from her gift I could not tell but I could only assume she was smelling him by the slight twitch of her nostrils.

"Can you hear the heartbeat?"

"Yes."

"Focus on it. The heart will tell you when you must stop. As the body loses blood the heart slows. That is the sign you must stop or the human will likely perish." I knew she was hearing the words but she was distracted. I could feel the faint glimmer of her hinger still lingering within the bond. The blood I had given her had taken off the edge as had the few mouthfuls she had from the other human male. They may have taken the sharp edge of urgency from her hunger but she was far from sated. From the way it felt she surely could have drained both of these men dry had she been alone.

"Can you see the artery as it pulses in his neck?" She pulled back slightly her body tense, ready to strike. I too was ready. Whether it be verbal or otherwise I was ready to stop her if need be.

"Yes."

"You should gently push your fangs into his flesh. Allow the skin to part around the sharp edge. There is no need to use a lot of force. Once the skin is broken allow the heart to provide each mouthful. Do not suck on the wound. You will take too much too fast and the human will die." Watching her carefully I watched her throat constrict around each swallow listening to the human's heart. As it began to slow I watched with pride as she pulled back her tongue lapping at the few drops that lingered unknowingly sealing the wounds. My pride turned to caution when she purred into the side of his neck. Like a shot she was on the other side of the room her chest heaving with unneeded breaths.

"You have done well," I said nicking my thumb on my fang to erase the bitemark. Seeing her shake her head as she pressed herself further into the wall I continued. "There was no need for me to physically restrain you or command you to stop. You stopped due to your own power. It takes great strength to do so."

"But I wanted more, I still want more." Sensing how tenuous her control was becoming I quickly moved us back downstairs. With her securely away from the humans I moved back upstairs. There was already a taxi sitting outside for him and his friend. They had both done well. Eric had chosen well. The men had dwarfed her with their size giving her the illusion that it would be difficult for her to truly harm them. That small psychological ploy may have helped her in her confidence tonight but there was no telling whether it would make any lasting effect.

Gripping the man's chin I over wrote his glamour with my own.

"You were caught up in conversation after work and lost track of time." The man's blank stare remained even as he nodded his head. "Now you will take your friend and get in the taxi outside. You will return home and go straight to bed." With another nod he rose moving to his friend. With a loose grip and movements like an automaton he followed the commands of my glamour. I would not usually bring humans to my home but with her limits still untested and the nest without safety needs must. We will need to be cautious. The comings and goings at this house are recorded.

Locking the door behind them I listened for the car leaving before moving downstairs. She was where I had left her perched on the edge of one of the leather chairs. Her hands were gripping the hem of the shirt, her eyes staring straight ahead though her eyes were unseeing.

"I can see where the glamour starts and ends."

"You can still hear his mind?"

"Yes. It's faint no but I can make him out against the others that are around."

"Were you able to do this before?"

"Not like this. I could maybe focus on someone as they left the room but it would take a lot of concentration. It didn't always work if there were a lot of people around me. I'd usually end up opening myself up to everyone."

"I find myself intrigued by your gift."

"It's not that interesting."

"On the contrary it makes you even more unique."

"I wouldn't call myself that."

"There is no doubt that over time I will have you understand why I believe it to be true."

"I'll agree to disagree," she replied a soft smile on her face. It seemed as though she did not believe me. Though I had no doubt she would come to understand the modesty she possessed was refreshing. Many newborns rise and become drunk upon the power their new life awarded them resulting in overinflated egos long before it could possibly be earned. Her lack of self esteem could prove to be problem should it persist. I know she has a great strength inside of her and I can only assume that her telepathy has left doubts over her worth. I can only imagine the things she has heard.

"I'm guessing this isn't all we'll be doing tonight."

"We will be leaving for the nest shortly. I will be officially announcing you as my progeny and introducing you to the vampires of my area." Rising I crossed to the closet space hidden behind a set of double doors. When she had gone to rest I had stored all of her new belongings alongside my own and the few pieces that belonged to my other progeny. There was even an outfit that belonged to Pam in here. Her visits were rare but one never knows what the future holds.

"It is a precursor to the next introduction that has been requested." There was confusion in the bond. I could almost hear her mind ticking trying to decipher who else would wish to meet her.

"Not your maker?" The thought of my maker being any where near such a precious jewel as her made my insides shudder. She must have felt something of the short torrent of emotions the vile creature always evoked as she was out of her seat her feet shuffling on the floor in her uncertainty.

"No. My maker has long since met the True Death."

"I'm sorry."

"Do not be. He was a vile creature."

"How did he die?"

"I killed him."


	16. Chapter 16

Her gasp was followed by the stilling of her entire body. She was only a few steps away. Were I to turn I would be able to see everything she was thinking within her eyes. The sudden feel of her arms wrapping around me from behind made a warmth grow deep inside. It was deeper than I expected to ever feel such a thing again, the place too cold, too dark, too full of shadows.

"I'm sorry," she whispered but she may have shouted them in the silence of the house. "I'm sorry I mentioned him and I'm sorry you didn't get a maker like I have."

"It is not something I think of so you should not. You cannot truthfully judge the kind of maker I am by the few days you have had with me."

"You're right but you've explained everything to me and have treated me fairly so far. My Gran taught me how to be a good judge of character and to never judge a book by it's cover. You haven't given me any reason to doubt you yet."

"I am afraid I do not judge myself in the same manner. Were you to know the things I have done you would not see me in such a favoured light."

"That may be true but those things made you who you are now." I could not believe such a creature as she truly existed.

"Your Gran is a wise woman." The wise words her Grandmother had bestowed upon her clearly were from her own generation, so little of those ways still resonating in the current youth.

"I always thought so." Her left hand settled over my still heart, her body flush against the back of mine. I could not remember the last time any one had held me in such a way. Not even my other progeny had been so brazen as to try in such a manner. "I think she would like you."

I could feel the pull of the muscles in her face as she moved to smile, her face pressed so tightly to me. The blood was rejoicing at being so close yet the feel of skin against skin made me wish to claim her more. Never had I had my resolve tested as much as I had with this tiny thing. Feeling her chest expand pushing her curves into me I smiled as the bond vibrated. She was smelling me. Her nose ran up my spine before her breath tickled my skin.

"Will I need to do anything tonight?" I felt her rise up on to the balls of her feet as she stretched to scent more of me, her body sliding against my own. I do not believe she is aware of her action.

"Remain away from trouble." Taking her hands I pulled them away from my chest before turning gently holding her hands within my own. Pulling her close to me I released her hands trapping both of her arms against me as I wrapped my own around her back settling them into the curve of her spine. "I will announce that you are my progeny by name to the audience that has gathered. Word was put out last night for a meeting at sun down. Once it is done some may wish to introduce themselves. I will remain with you for the entire time." Lifting one hand from her back I pushed aside a few strands of hair that obscured her eyes from being fully in my view.

"I have a feeling that I will spend much of the night attempting to keep the men of my area away from you." Though I could see the doubt in her eyes I knew that it was true. Her beauty, her poise would attract men from any race and many women also. Her sweet scent and her blatant innocent appearance would appeal to many. The beast within them would strive to taint, to twist such a pure thing. Only my scent from her recent turning and our near constant close proximity would help curb many of their instincts.

Whilst very few have ever seen me take any physical action against another beyond doling out public punishment, a few on the receiving end privately, they know the rumours, the stories of the indiscretions of my younger years when I was barely more than a wild animal. I have been involved in many incidents since but those years, the ones where I was dubbed Death were the ones many fixated on. These stories also served as a reminder as to my age, when there were few of us walking the Earth. There are so few of us elders left and those that are remain in the old world, some caught in their ways unwilling to change others uninterested in what such a young place could offer.

Slipping my hand back to the base of her back, trailing my fingers down in a slow but smooth path I hold back the smirk at the slight tremor of her body.

"You doubt what I say to be true?"

"I'm pretty I know that. It's down to the blonde hair and, erm, other assets that people tend to give me a second look." If she were human I was sure she would have blushed. Even though she still looked equal parts embarrassed and disgruntled.

"You underestimate yourself little one. I have walked the Earth a very long time. My memory is impeccable. I know of very few who carry a beauty such as yours whether human, vampire or other." Her smile became indulgent, her eyes holding the twinkle of mischief.

"I still think you are bias. You are my maker after all. Shouldn't you be trying to bolster my ego so I walk into a room full of vampires thinking I'm the greatest thing ever?"

"I find it most refreshing that you do not. Many seem to be awakened with an unhealthy opinion of themselves."

"Unhealthy how?"

"They come to believe they are indestructible. That arrogance usually leaves them disobeying our laws, sometimes, though it is rare, almost bringing our very existence to the attention of humans. When they are brought before me they believe they should not be punished, that their superiority makes them immune to punishments. It becomes the task of the Sheriff to educate the young where it should have been the maker."

"They are drunk on power."

"Yes."

"I suppose it is understandable. The chance of dying is lower, if we are hurt we heal. We are strong, fast and for all intents the top of the food chain." It was fascinating how her mind worked. "But we are greatly outnumbered. All our strengths would mean nothing if we were faced with hundreds or thousands against one."

"More." Her eyes rose from the tattoo on my chest, her look wary as she searched mine for the truth.

"Then other than living for longer there really is very little difference. Do the gains truly out weigh the losses?"

"There are times when it feels as though the losses overwhelm the gains but sometimes there are as you say silver linings." If only she knew how the existence of my progeny had held me to the Earth at times of great disparity.

"Come we must dress. We are due at the nest."

"What should I wear?"

"Whatever you wish." I would not make suggestions on what she should wear. I had seen everything that Eric had purchased and there was not a single thing that would be inappropriate. Though some of the lingerie options were more revealing than I believed she would be comfortable with she would have those covered. The only time I could or would voice my opinion would be should we be called before the council. I enjoyed the last few moments of contact by slowly caressing my hands from her back to her arms and then down to her hands. Stepping back I kept hold of one of her hands as I slowly walked her to the closet. It was very small compared to that of the one at the nest and my other homes but there were other choices upstairs should there be need. I had to provide for any and all situations.

My own choices were slightly more limited than her own. Though I tend to favour greys and whites in more natural fibres such as linen and cotton I do have several suits and more formal attire. I choose to wear them as I see fit. Today is such a day. A full suit would make the outfit more formal but I am not known for such attire at the nest. Arriving in something other than my usual outfit will be enough to cement the occasion. The pants are a light wool in a dark grey and are teamed with a crisp white shirt. Dressed in a blink I step back and away giving her some space and a little privacy.

She watches me wide eyed as I pass her face full of amazement. I see her shake her head clear before she steps forward her hands skimming over the plastic coverings before stopping. I turned away willing to give her the privacy she wanted. Though I hoped this would fade in time as she became more accustomed to her new life I would allow her to hold on to some of her human ideals.


	17. Chapter 17

The closer we drew to the nest the harder it was to hold my shields. It felt like before when I was younger and would have to fight for every second the shields held as the voices crashed against them like waves against cliffs. They always failed and I knew they would this time. Faint murmurs grew to whispers. By the time the car turned the last corner they were almost completely obliterated.

Some were images, others words in more languages than I knew existed. They were all piled one on top of another until it was nothing more than a big hard ball sitting heavily within my head. Though the pain wasn't as overwhelming as it usually would be had this scenario happened only a month before it was still too much for my mind to take.

I didn't notice the car had stopped moving as my body began to curl up on itself trying to physically shield myself now my mental shields had failed.

The touch against my arm gave me something to focus on, though I still braced myself for the crystal quality of a mind. The wave of calm that washed over me helped drown out some of the noise. His mind was calm, cool like a flowing stream, the words as foreign as any other I heard so far but they had almost a lyrical lilt that soothed me further.

How was it that it affected me so much when only the day before I had been here, walked through here and yet nothing? My shields had held and I had felt confident in them even when I had been distracted. Finding some sort of grip on my own thoughts i could only feel one presence int he car with me.

_Where's Eric?_

_I have sent him inside._

_I can hear them all._

_The nest?_

_Everyone. The nest, the neighbours all of it._

_Focus on me. Focus on my voice. I will not let anything happen to you. I will be with you._

Using his voice I wrapped my mind up allowing all the voices, the pictures, the noise to swirl around me and him like a tornado. The further I pushed them away the less I heard them. They were there waiting only now they were slowing, the speed dwindling down dissipating from white noise into nothing. I could see them, feel them only it was like looking through a thick glass wall.

Feeling more like myself I opened my eyes to the sight of the car door. I wasn't where I had been seated before. Where as I had put myself close to the door when I climbed into the car I was now sat in Godric's lap. His hands were cradling my head so close to his own, his fingers spread from my crown to my nape my hair wrapped around his fingers. Though his face was impassive I could see in his eyes, could feel through his eyes his worry and concern for me.

_I'm OK now._

His eyes were reading me just as he was reading our bond. I could feel him. It was gentle, subtle even, nothing more than like the faint brush of fingers against skin. I could only assume that given what we knew about our bond that it was because we were in actual physical contact.

_We must go in now._

I nodded my understanding before sliding from his lap back to the leather of the seat. I felt oddly cold now we were no longer touching.

With enviable grace Godric opened his door and rose from his seat exiting the car in what looked like one quick move. Blindly reaching out for my own door handle my eyes on his side of the car I froze as a hand came in to view in the still open doorway. There was a slight sense of deja vu. Slipping across the leather I placed my hand in his, putting both feet to the ground before attempting to rise. I still didn't feel completely confident in my ability to move in these shoes.

Godric stepped away almost immediately, releasing my hand. It took a few of his steps before I felt balanced enough to follow him. Resisting the urge to fidget with my hands I kept a three pace difference between us. He hadn't told me to but it felt like something that I should do. It reminded me of something I had read somewhere, a book of customs from some time or another. Showing my respect for his position I suppose.

The closer we came to the door the more the voices pushed against my shields. It wasn't as violent as it had been before and I could make out the occasional word or phrase but it was very little. I felt as though I was going to need to re learn everything from my trial and error days. I was not looking forward to it. My mind reading skills have been a constant strain and though they weren't perfect, the various methods I developed to control it and protect myself took a lot of years and a lot of pain.

As we reached the door I shut everything down. I stopped thinking and I locked down my face as much as I could. Where I would usually put a smile on my face and bluff my way through what I could hear now I tried for indifference. Now I tried to let every little tid bit that I heard and every facial expression that was cast my way mean nothing on the outside. With my head up, my shoulders back and with as much grace as I could muster I walked behind Godric following in his wake as the crowd parted for their sheriff.

It felt like every eye in the room was on me. Their thoughts were pushing against my shields making me feel like the room was shrinking around me. Their eyes were raking over me, fiery hot trails that ran over me from my head to my toes. It wasn't just uncomfortable it was unbearable and brought to mind the horrible nightmares I had in high school of being naked in class with everyone talking and thinking at me, laughing and taunting pulling me apart not just the outside but also on the inside until there was nothing left of me but a curled up ball empty of everything. Good heavens I couldn't do this.


	18. Chapter 18

I know it has been forever since I have updated this story. I'm sorry. Life took over and stole all my time. I've tried desperately to work more on my online store so I could take my family to Disney World for my eldest daughter's birthday next year. I am completely off target so my attention has been a little more on that than on this. Sadly spending more time on it meant spending more time away from the fun things, like writing.

I am still working on trying to earn more money but I am trying to find a balance between the two without losing sleep or letting my house fall apart.

Unfortunately when my brain engaged making me realise just how much time had gone, I came in here and I discovered that several of the files I had loaded up and edited to make a close-step-to-ready-chapter had expired and so were gone. This was a complete nightmare because I had to hunt down the original and try to edit it back to how it had been. That was not easy by any stretch of the imagination. I had lost a couple of other pieces that were purely in here having been written on the fly.

This isn't very long. I'm trying to get back into the swing of things.

* * *

><p>Newborns tend to garner attention. There is a curiousity there. They want to see for themselves what made them special, what made them catch the attention of their makers enough for them to wish to turn them. They do however attract attention of the negative kind. Many hold a disdain for newborns. They are in many cases wild, feral creatures requiring a great deal of attention and effort to put them right. This causes a distraction which alone can be reason enough for some to never wish to add to their bloodline. Many would leave a nest if a new born is brought within the fold believing that their uncontrollable urges would lead to the demise of the nest. There is as much safety in numbers as there is in solidarity both from forces outside and within.<p>

From experience I know that should any whispers of detection arise for the nest for many there would be no doubt that the blame would fall at her feet.

I can see them now watching her, some careful trying to keep their looks clandestine but others are openly looking, staring at her.

There is a tornado of emotions inside of her quickly moving from one to the next before coming back full circle again. It is threatening to pull me in too, the outer edges touching my inner calm.

Some of them I could understand. The vampires of my area would look intimidating in one way or another to anyone regardless of their vampiric nature. With the knowledge of it of course it would increase the fear. Without knowing their individual ages it would be as much of a guessing game as to their strengths but I could understand from her perspective how they are all older, stronger and faster than she is. I am however older than them all.

Other emotions made no sense. The embarrassment alone was causing me much confusion. She had nothing to be embarrassed about. She looked impeccable even after her moment in the car. I would never have allowed her to present herself as anything but her best. Not for my reputation though I know I would be judged by her, but for her own. The greater her beginning the greater her chances of survival particularly in this modern world.

As I took my place in front of everyone I was pleased that she showed no outward sign of her distress. Her face was as perfectly serene as it was when she had been at rest though her eyes held that sparkle of life. It appeared that I was not the only one taken in by the twinkle in her eye. Many it seemed could not overcome their curiosity or their lust when it came to my newest progeny.

It took a few moments too long for attention to be brought to myself. For many this was the first time they had seen her but many within the crowd were here or at the Magister's meeting on the night she arose. She may not have been adorned as she is now but she was still beautiful, most definitely something magical to behold. Knowing the sooner I began the sooner we could leave I moved to begin the meeting.

"Many of you are already aware that I have taken another progeny. This is Susannah Adlee. I am sure many of you have seen her face on the television broadcasts. My newest childe was involved in the recent threat to our existence. It is how I came to choose to make her one of us.

"The human case will be closed. Steps are being taken to solve the murder without our detection or to speed up the process with which this will become a cold case. It is most imperative to our existence that no knowledge be leaked of her location. Given recent events having brought the world's spotlight closer to us than ever before we must move cautiously. This is a new age, one like we have never seen before. The technology at the humans disposal could undo centuries of work.

"There is no evidence that links these attacks with any of the others in which Russell Edgington is responsible. Each area Sheriff and the Monarch has seen to it that they never will.

"The death sentence for Russell Edgington has been vetted, the footage has been examined as have the guards. The word from the Authority is that Russell Edgington has met the True Death. They also wished to extend their gratitude to those of you who stepped forward voluntarily in aiding in the capture of Edgington.

"I will leave you to your evenings."

As I finished speaking most simply averted their eyes. Some made small adjustments to their bodies moving them back to their grouping without losing sight of my youngest. Several left the nest after a brief tip of their heads. These few I knew needed to be elsewhere this evening. We may have the advantage of time but in order to keep our true nature hidden we still needed to be perceived as human. This meant having some form of interaction at our places of business and allowing ourselves to do what appeared to be mundane human tasks. The few that left were involved in the night life here, an obvious time for us to be around, keeping hot spots for humans and others. This constant interaction also allows us to keep up with the ever changing times. It can be all too easy to fall into a routine away from humans only to return into the fold and find much has changed that causes un needed attention. It can become all too easy to lose track of one self and fall under suspicion especially in these fast paced times.

After a few moments I moved over to one of the chairs off to the side near my office. I had no interest in sitting. The vampires of my area would wish to approach, some to speak to me, others merely for a personal introduction. Positioning myself below them was out of the question. Whilst the majority of the vampires within my area do respect me there are others who do not. No level of respect however could fully protect from a vampire. I am older, stronger and faster than most worldwide. In this situation how ever it would not be myself that would fall under attack. I must show her that I have the utmost confidence in her. Hopefully that will remove some of the doubt that still lingers at the edges of the bond.

As I thought several members of my area moved almost in unison. They remained at human speed slowly making there way through the room. One by one they stepped forward some seeking personal introductions, some merely wanted to sate their curiosity, others trying to gain favour. Some were merely looking for a closer view. Though our eye sight is unparrelled I have found that seeing her and being near her are two very different experiences. I could see in the shift in their demeanour, by the change in their eyes that she'd had an effect though it seemed she was completely unaware.

There were a few I would need to be cautious of. Though I had barely taken more than half a step from her since the announcement the look many gave her was cause for concern. Their looks of lust were justifiable she was certainly a beauty but the look was not wholly that for some. Knowing that their past conquests had been purely for the attainment of other needs I was much less comfortable having them around her. Alas I could not have them removed from the building without cause even if I truly wished to. I could only hope that what ran through their minds was not too disturbing for my little one.


End file.
